


Love, Don't Be Shy

by kw_writes



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Assassins & Hitmen, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Blood and Violence, Enemy Lovers, Eventual Smut, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, First Meetings, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Inspired by Killing Eve (TV 2018), Modern Era, Modern Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn, Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-25
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:20:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 54,494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25506586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kw_writes/pseuds/kw_writes
Summary: He's supposed to track you down, and you're supposed to be untraceable.The more the two of you dance around each other, the more your dependence on one another blooms - like a narcotic flower.
Relationships: Levi & Reader, Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin) & Reader, Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin)/Reader, Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin)/You
Comments: 376
Kudos: 894





	1. Boy and Girl

The air was thick with regret as an impregnable silence filled the room. The news played its role as white noise in the background. The drip of the IV acted as a metronome. And the sounds of labored breathing was the ticking clock and reminder of how time was nothing but a thief. Still, the silence remained louder as two men sat before each other - both with so much to say and no words to say it with. 

One was on the verge of dying, unable to say much at all.

The other just wished he was dying. 

He had nothing left to say. 

Kenny let out a soft groan as he grabbed the remote control hooked up to his bedside. His finger tapped over the button repeatedly as he tried to increase his own morphine drip, and the younger man next to him let out a sigh of disgust as he processed what he was seeing. He couldn't believe he once thought the world of the dying man in front of him when he was a child. Levi could remember wanting nothing more than to impress him.

_How fucking stupid_ , he thought to himself. Being young and dumb did nothing but cloud his vision before it was too late, and he loathed himself for ever having been so naive.

Never again.

Levi wasn't even sure what he wanted from these daily visits, but he hadn't missed a day since Kenny was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Each day he visited, it was a matter of waiting to hear whether or not he died, or witness the goddamn thing for himself. He hated him, just as much as he did when he was a teenager. He owed him nothing, but he felt obligated to be there nonetheless. 

Even with the shit storm that was work, Levi came to visit his uncle every single day. The two of them never uttered a damn word to each other, and Levi was sure he didn't want to hear what Kenny had to say anyway. What was left to say?

Still, Levi came faithfully. And here he was again. 

Levi leaned back against his chair and shut his eyes tightly as irritation lit up every neural pathway in his skull, blazing through his nerve receptors like a forest fire. He wasn't sure what was worse.

The labored breathing.

The mixture of hospital grade bleach and death.

The noise on the television.

The buzz of his phone in his pocket.

Maybe it was a combination of everything. 

A gentle rap interrupted Levi out of his thoughts as Kenny's nurse Petra entered the room, holding a tray of soft food for the older man. She quietly closed the door and gave Levi a sweet smile, before greeting Kenny. The old man perked up as soon as the ginger-haired nurse walked in, and Levi scoffed. That old fucker wouldn't lift a finger when his own nephew came in the room, but he somehow found the 'strength' to get up when the pretty young nurse made an appearance. 

_Shitting rat bastard, even till the end,_ Levi thought bitterly.

“Afternoon, Kenny! Today is banana pudding. It’s surprisingly good,” Petra giggled as she leaned over him, and held the spoon close to his chapped lips. Kenny let out a rough chuckle and obediently ate with her help, and Levi could feel his skin crawl. 

He sneered at the interaction and turned his head to the television behind Petra instead, choosing to finally pay attention to what he had been ignoring for a larger part of the day. 

_“I'm Ilse Langnar, and onto the unfortunate news for the day. Today, the body of Trost Ambassador Dimo Reeves was found in his flat in Rose City.”_

"How are you doing today?" Petra tried to ask as she turned her head towards Levi. The dark-haired man didn't stir. Instead, Levi remained focused on the television - deaf to the world, especially towards the nagging buzz of his phone in his pocket. 

_“- but police do suspect it to be murder. MI6 has been called in for further investigation, but no details as to **what** they may be looking into. I spoke to Director Erwin Smith today and -” _

The chair creaked as Levi pushed it back to get up to standing, and Petra momentarily stopped what she was doing. Forgetting all about Kenny, she put the tray down and ran towards Levi to stand in front of him - blockading him from the door with her body. Her arms stretched behind her, and Levi rose a brow up at her boldness. 

“Visiting hours are extended today, Mr. Ackerman. You can stay as long as you like,” she murmured the last part timidly, and tucked her head down so that her ginger locks curtained around her face, hiding the blush that rose on her cheeks. 

Levi let out a long huff of breath and glared at his uncle who was watching the entire interaction like it was his own entertainment. Kenny's broken yellow teeth peeked out from behind his cracked, dry lips as he watched his nephew lead the fine dance of rejection with the young nurse. Again. 

“I have work,” Levi said pointedly, gesturing to the television screen behind her. 

“Oh, what do you do for a liv-”

But Levi was gone before Petra knew it, and the door shut with a slam as he walked past her and out of the room. 

She sighed and returned to feeding Kenny, who felt sorry for her. This moment of weakness would've been fleeting in his youth, but dying does a number on your moral code - or so Kenny supposed. He felt sympathy for her. Petra was sweet and kind. Not the right woman for his nephew, but a good person nonetheless. Kenny struggled as his body shook and as his lungs tried to find the strength to work. 

Kenny finally sighed out a weak exhale.

It wasn't Petra's fault. It wasn't Levi's fault either.

It was no one's fault but his own. 

* * *

“Gloves,” Levi demanded as he moved to duck under the yellow caution tape. The neon straps stretched haphazardly across the entrance of Dimo Reeves's apartment, and Levi glared at the back of the tall blonde man standing in the center of the room as he moved to fully standing. Two fingers roughly tapped Levi's shoulder as his colleague Mike handed him a pair of clean gloves and a face mask. Levi nodded to show his gratitude, and snatched the protective equipment out of the man's large hands. 

If he thought the smell of the hospital was putrid, nothing could’ve prepared him for the smell of Dimo Reeves’s apartment. Besides the smell of death, Dimo Reeves's apartment smelled like what someone _thought_ older rich men smelled like. Leather, wood, a mix of cocaine, and money. Levi rolled his eyes and pushed his way forward towards his boss, who was hovering over Dimo's body.

"You didn't answer your phone," Erwin said without turning his head, his blue eyes focused on the dead man below him instead. Levi scoffed as he stood next to Erwin, and he put his gloves on with a hard snap against his skin.

"If I start answering my phone now, you'll call more than you already fucking do."

Erwin put his head down, shaking it in mirth as he laughed at the younger man besides him. 

“How’s Kenny?” 

“He’s dying,” Levi replied flatly, kneeling down to get a better look at the dead man - careful not to disturb the scene of the crime. "Cause of death?"

“We won’t know until the coroner can do an official autopsy. I told them to leave the crime scene undisturbed so we could inspect it. Hange and forensics will come in after we're done. My guess isn’t death by suicide. No history of mental illness. Windows are still secure and locked. No one suspicious was seen entering the building. No signs of suicidal tendencies, history of mental illnesses. Good man, albeit greedy.”

"No such thing as a good man, Erwin. Especially if he's just another greedy fucking pig," Levi deadpanned, glaring at the man above him. 

"I'm not a good man, Levi? You don't even think of yourself as that?" Erwin asked, the amusement apparent in his baritone voice. Levi rolled his eyes.

"We're no better than anyone else. How long has he been here?" 

“The police suspect he’s been here for at least a day.”

Levi paused as he noticed a trail of dust on Dimo Reeve’s hardwood floor. A sound of disgust left the dark haired man and he started to examine the body again, his steel gray eyes scanning over every surface of skin. Erwin frowned at his contemporary as he readied to say what had been on his mind all morning. 

“This follows the pattern, Levi. Another government official found dead within the last two weeks. There is a pattern to these kills, and we must figure out who and why. Immediately."

Levi drowned out Erwin's theories and inspected Dimo's body more closely.

No major lacerations, no cuts, no bruises, nothing. He paused as he took notice of Dimo's fingers and let his gaze linger on his right hand, eyes traveling up to his index finger. If Levi were a dumber man, he'd have assumed Dimo decided to nap on his ugly imported oriental rug, and somehow died in his sleep. Levi looked up towards the kitchen island and noticed Reeves didn't touch an ounce of his breakfast. The toast remained on its plate - burnt and unmoved. The butter had all but melted to room temperature in its container. The coffee cup stood in the center, tepid and full. The table was all but littered with regular shit, until Levi focused on the small device lying askew at the edge of the table.

He got up to take a closer look at what it was and rolled his eyes. 

Such an obvious fucking clue. 

"I have a theor-"

“Was Reeves diabetic?” Levi cut Erwin off as he snapped the glove off his hands, his eyes glazing over as he stared at the tall man. 

“I believe so, why do you ask?”

“Tell fucking Four-Eyes and her team to make sure they bag his glucose monitor first. See his fat ass finger?” 

Levi pointed to Dimo Reeve’s index finger on his right hand where he would’ve checked for his blood sugar levels in the morning. 

"Poison," Erwin replied almost gleefully as he kneeled down by Dimo, making Levi recoil. It was unnatural how excited Erwin got over these leads, and Levi never understood it. The taller man's blue eyes would darken with so much excitement, they looked black. Almost like he got off on the idea of getting closer to the truth, whatever that was.

"You look like you have to take a shit, Erwin," Levi cringed, never taking his eyes off of Erwin's face. 

"I was right, Levi. And to think, we have an assas-"

“Oi. Bloodhound," Levi pocketed his hands into his trousers, pointing his chin towards Mike, gesturing for him to come over. The larger man looked up and stalked his way over to where Levi was standing by the kitchen island. "What do you smell over here besides the fucking obvious?”

Mike paused and bent down to let his nose take in the scents before him, stopping as he inhaled a faint scent on the glucose monitor. 

“Orange blossom. Vanilla. Marshmallow,” Mike replied thoughtfully as he tried to place the source of the aroma. 

Levi gave him a nod of acknowledgment. 

“Good. Me too.”

* * *

A low groan escaped you as you slowly let the weight of your body fall to the mercy of the hot water. Your candles filled the room with warmth, and you giggled as you swigged your champagne around in its glass before downing the thing in its entirety. A hard knock came at the door, and you kicked the bubbles from the tub out in frustration. You had hoped to have more time to yourself before your handler made his appearance, but he never did like making your life easy. 

“Are you decent?” Zeke's exasperated voice asked. 

“I’m the farthest thing from decent, but come in,” you filled your glass with more champagne and Zeke pushed the door open. His eyes were shut tight with concentration, and you couldn't help but laugh as you thought of how constipated he looked. Your joke completely went over his head. Then again, Zeke never did understand you very well.

“Jesus, Zeke. Open your eyes. How many times do I have to tell you if you want me, you have to pay for me?” you said flirtatiously, wiggling your toes at him. 

“I **do** pay for you. Quite handsomely, too, one might say,” he muttered and shook his head as he sat by the edge of the tub. Zeke's eyes lingered over your burning candles, vintage bottle of champagne, and designer lotions and soaps. 

“And is it worth it?" 

The blonde man sighed and pulled his phone out. 

“Trost Ambassador Dimo Reeves is set to be replaced by Nile Dok, effective immediately, following the former man’s unfortunate death earlier this morning,” Zeke read proudly from the screen, flipping it to show you the picture of Nile smiling from his earlier induction.

“Good job,” Zeke smiled at you even more now and the glare of the candle light flickered across his frames and over his irises. “ _They_ are very pleased. How’d you do it?”

"The pharmacist told me I was of 'great help'," you continued as if you didn't hear him and Zeke suppressed his lecture for you. Your hands grazed up your arm as you lathered more bubbles together. Cupping them together, you blew them towards Zeke, nearly missing his lenses as the bubbles fell down onto his shirt. You giggled and he pressed his lips together.

"You'd think rich people would smell better, Zeke. He smelled gross," you scrunched your face up as you remembered the scent of Dimo Reeve's cologne. _Dumb rich bastard_ , you thought.

"Not everyone smells nice like you," he sighed out your name, making you freeze with anger. Zeke registered the look of murder on your face at your birth name, and tried to draw in some sympathy. Not that he really knew what that was. "Sorry. _Kilian_. Maybe in another life you can teach the poor bastard how to pick the right scent, sweetheart."

You smiled happily at his correction, and sipped on your champagne glass.

"You should wear this one cologne I saw last week in-"

Zeke cut you off as he licked his fingers and squeezed the wick out on one of the candles you had burning, completely extinguishing the flame. His face changed to a serious gaze as he moved to standing, his jaw and shoulders set with determination.

You pouted. 

“New job. I put it on your vanity along with your last payment. You have 24 hours starting now. No restrictions like we wanted with Reeves so have fun. Not too messy though. Make sure you get off the second to the last stop,” Zeke got up and stood by the door, his tall frame overshadowing any light in the room. “I hear the train ride to Paris is quite nice, though. Let me know, will you?” 

With that, the door shut and you sunk your entire body underneath the water, holding your breath and closing your eyes tightly.

Have fun, huh? 

You sprang up from the water and grabbed a towel for your hair and body, and walked out to your vanity. A grin stretched across your lips as you saw your payment tucked between your perfume bottles, along with your new job assignment. Your fingers moved deftly as you unfurled the paper and read over your next case. As you memorized your job, you reached out for your perfume bottle and sprayed the tantalizing scent over your pulse points.

Your target was a man. 

_Spritz!_ over both sides of your neck.

He was in his late 40s-early 50s.

_Spritz!_ over the backs of your knees. 

He was another piece of shit politician. 

_Spritz!_ over the insides of your wrists.

Now this was an occasion that called for Dior.

* * *

Sighing, Levi pulled out an anti-bacterial wipe and wiped down the train seat before sitting on it.

It was late, and he was the only person in the train car. If he had to meet any other person in the world this late at night, he would've told them to fuck off. But it was Isabel he had to meet, so he didn't. Huffing out a breath of resignation, he leaned forward and rested his forearms on his knees, hanging his head down. After a long meeting with Erwin and his colleagues, he was fucking exhausted.

All of them came to a conclusion that the recent deaths of government officials had, in fact, been murders. Most likely carried out by highly intelligent operatives, and backed by an even smarter, underground organization. Erwin couldn't have been more fucking delighted at the prospect of chasing down this group, but Levi couldn't share the same sentiment. He found it...boring. Then again, what didn't he find boring? 

Looking down, he fiddled with his watch and rubbed his thumb over the smudge on the glass, his grey-eyes penetrating the analog clock's time.

11:11.

Wishes weren’t real, but in that moment, Levi wished for something.

What? He wasn't sure.

But something.

_Anything_ to break the monotony that had become his fucking life in the past five years. 

The train came to a halt, and the squeal of the car doors pierced his ears as the wheels scratched against the tracks. The click clack of heels followed shortly after as you entered from the opposite side. Levi's gaze flickered up at you upon your entrance, and he paused as he studied you. The first thing he thought was you had the eyes of a fox.

Playful.

Fun.

Predatory. 

He wondered how someone so young could afford head to toe vintage Dior, but shook himself out of his nagging thoughts when you locked eyes with him, smiling. He closed his eyes and leaned back against his seat. The last thing Levi wanted to do was to notice any more about you, let alone make you think he wanted to talk to you. He didn't want you to talk to him either. 

You made sure to sit directly across the short, handsome man and crossed your legs as you studied him. His eyes were shut, and you felt your pulse quicken as you watched his chest rise and heave with every breath he took. Never in your life had you seen or smelled anyone so... _clean_. He smelled like fresh laundry out of the dryer. Fresh rain water after a stormy night. Morning dew that settled on top of the grass when everyone was still asleep. _Dryer sheets and black tea_ , you thought to yourself with a smile. 

What drew you in the most to him was his deceptively youthful face. It pulled you in like a siren calling a sailor out to sea, and you wanted nothing more than to trace your fingers over the planes of his cheekbones. Study them. Memorize them. His Adam's apple bobbed as he gulped in a breath, and you let your eyes travel to his jawline. You briefly wondered what it looked like when it held tension.

What would a man like this hold tension about anyway? 

You realized you liked his hair, too. He had fine, dark locks that fell across his face. Wispy and soft-looking. You tilted your head and stared at the undercut at the back of his head. He must've cut it himself. It wasn't bad. A sigh escaped you as you imagined running your hands over it. 

Licking your lips, you leaned forward to rest your elbows on your stocking covered knees. You stared at him closely, imprinting the image of him into your mind.

Too bad you had a job to do. 

"You could paint a fucking picture of me at this point, with the way you've been staring," the man's deep, rough voice echoed in the train car. His eyes were still shut, but you didn't waver. Your heart beat against your chest at the challenge, and you watched as his jaw clicked in annoyance. Finally, Levi opened his eyes - freezing when he got a good look at your face. As he studied your features briefly, he realized you weren’t as young as he thought you were. You weren't old either.

You were entirely remarkable both in presence and appearance and he couldn't figure you out.

You were...an enigma.

That was a first for him.

He moved to open his mouth, but the train came to a screeching halt and Levi took it as a sign to shut the fuck up and not press any further. 

_One more stop before Paris_. 

You moved to stand up, and Levi closed his eyes at the chance to be alone again hoping he scared you off. He wasn't sure why, but he didn't want to bother figuring you out even though every neuron in his brain fired at full blast the moment he got to really look at you. Shit, the second you stepped into the fucking train car.

Your eyes glimmered with excitement again as you relished at another chance to look at his face. It was voyeuristic to look at a man like this, but you swore you’d never seen someone so...beautiful. 

"I guess I have to learn how to paint now," you finally replied with a quiet laugh, and he opened one eye to stare at you in confusion. A feeling of yearning washed over you as you stole one more fleeting glance at him but you had a job to do. You let your long legs carry you past him and out the car doors - your hand brushing sneakily over his shoulder as you left. 

Levi fully jolted up the moment you walked by him, and his mind ran frantically as he tried to register what had just happened.

It wasn't what you had said that bothered him. 

It wasn't the way the train of your polka dot Dior dress followed behind you as your long elegant legs stretched out. Nor was it the way your hair billowed in front of you as you walked. It wasn't the way your breasts bounced as you leapt onto the train platform with ease in your heels.

No.

It was the way the lingering aroma of _orange blossom, vanilla, and marshmallow_ wafted through his nose when he smelled the inside of your wrist as your fingertips kissed the tops of his shoulders.

By the time Levi realized this, the train doors had shut with a close and he groaned in frustration at his momentary lapse in judgement as the train started to take off. He whipped his head to look for any sign of you on the train platform, but he realized he didn't have to look too hard because you were standing right fucking there.

As if you were waiting for him to look back at you. 

You gave him a devilish grin and disappeared up the stairs; quick like a fox. 


	2. Devil's Angel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

>   
> 
> 
>   
>  _the way you go to my head,_   
>  _something tells me i'd be better off dead_   
> 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **TW: Sexual assault is mentioned in passing, and so is sex with minors. Absolutely nothing is explicit, but I am issuing a warning anyway!**

His hands shook as he typed up the minutes for the meeting, but Bertholdt listened with attentiveness as Erwin spoke. He nodded with respect towards every detail Erwin laid down about the most recent murders of politicians. He even gazed in wonderment as Hange gave the most intricate forensic details as she recalled what she had discovered in her lab.

Yes.

Nodding was what Bertholdt did. 

He nodded as if he knew nothing at all. 

Because no - he did not know that Darius Zackly had been poisoned. He also didn’t know that Dot Pixis inhaled toxic candle fumes, and that that was the cause of his death. 

“But this one is my favorite!” Hange said with excitement, bringing her fists up to both sides of her face. 

“Whoever the killer was, somehow added poison inside the tip of the glucose monitor that we found in Dimo Reeve’s home. Moblit and I took it apart and found -” the remote clicked as Hange brought up pictures of the glucose monitor taken apart, “- a small mechanism was built inside of it. As soon as Dimo would’ve gone to check his blood sugar, the mechanism would’ve pushed up to pierce his finger with slow acting poison. It was truly...”

She grew silent. Hange stared down, and when she looked back up at the table, Bertholdt could see a glint shine across her glasses. 

“Truly…truly...BRILLIANT! If it weren’t so diabolical, of course. Wonderful, but wrong,” she nodded, gesturing to Erwin who was looking at the woman with slight bewilderment.

Erwin cleared his throat and straightened up, gently ushering Hange away from the head of the table. 

“Thank you, Hange. Yes. One thing that all three of these men have in common is they were found in mysterious conditions. All alone in their apartments, poisoned within weeks of each other. But that isn’t their only connection. What else does anyone see?” 

He paused as he waited for the table to answer. But the only sounds that could be heard was Levi tapping one finger on the table as he tried to survive the long meeting. 

“Well they’re all politicians,” Nanaba spoke up. 

Levi rolled his eyes at this. That much was obvious.

“Yes. All politicians who have been quickly replaced since their deaths,” Erwin answered.

“Any ties between the replacements, Erwin?” Hange adjusted her glasses, pulling her laptop towards her for further research if needed.

“None so far. All of their replacements were the rightful successors. There are no ties between any of them, not the present nor the latter. All varied in political opinions and policies. Different histories in stances. Different business ventures. Dimo Reeves had investments in the agriculture business. Nile Dok owns a few hotels. It appears there is no connection.” 

Mike grunted at this, and Nanaba nodded, affirming the tone of inquiry in the way Mike motioned to be heard.

“Appears. Meaning you think there is one.”

Erwin tented his fingers together as he sat down at the table and paused before speaking.

“Perhaps. I have my theories, but nothing is solid yet. But I have an informant who may have more for me. I will be meeting with him tomorrow to see what else we can discover. Anything else we can notice here? Even if it isn’t about their possible connections with one another?”

Upon hearing this, Bertholdt paused in his typing before proceeding again. Noticing the change in his mood, Levi leaned back in his seat and stared at the taller, younger man in the corner. Bertholdt could feel those cold grey eyes on him, and his skin prickled as he felt himself being studied and dissected. He cleared his throat.

“It seems like the assassin doesn’t like blood. All of these were done with poison. May - maybe this is their preferred way of doing things,” he stuttered, hoping to shake Levi's attention away from him.

Levi scoffed again.

“Use that thing that’s a few feet above your ass and think, Hoover,” he rolled his eyes as he pushed himself out of his seat, snatching the remote from the center of the table into his hand.

“Whoever she is,” he clicked quickly through all the crime scene photos, “it’s obvious that she gets bored. Easily. All the kills were done with poison, but each in escalation. Zackly? Poison in his whiskey. Pixis? Poisoned from the fucking candle fumes.” 

He didn’t bother to repeat what Hange had just told them about Dimo Reeves, but when Bertholdt nodded shakily, Levi knew he had made his point. Nanaba paused and locked eyes with Mike, shaking her head yes towards his silent look. She leaned forward and rested her chin on her fist.

“She?”

Levi’s mind flashed back to the strange young woman on the train. He shook his head again. 

“Yeah, she.” 

“What makes you say that?”

Levi paused as he faced the photos of a dead Dimo Reeves, before shoving his hands in his pockets.

“All of these shit for brains had sexual assault cases filed against them within the last five years. Classic dickhead politicians who wouldn’t look twice at a woman let alone let her get their attention unless they wanted to fuck her.” 

He sneered at the depravity.

“Whoever she is, she’s smart. She’s using it - them - to her advantage. She’s **not** afraid of blood,” Levi spat out towards Bertholdt’s direction, who shrunk under the shorter man’s harshness. 

He paused and faced the projector once more, staring at Dimo Reeve’s body as if he were hoping to teleport himself back there to gather more clues. 

“Tch. I can guaran-fucking-tee you that her next kill won’t be with poison.”

* * *

Dior was a good idea. 

It was easy to slip into a fancy tailor shop like this dressed in Dior.

The shop manager didn’t even have time to question your being there before you slipped a cloth of chloroform over her mouth, and tied her up in the back. 

Your fingers ran over the silk of the custom dyed ties in the shop, and you thought to yourself the material was quite nice. You’d have to nick a few before you left. The jingle of the wind chimes by the shop entrance let you know someone had walked in, and you gave a wide grin towards the man who’d entered, your mind thinking back to the information Zeke left on your vanity. 

Rod Reiss was someone who looked just like he did in his picture as he did in person. 

“Good morning, Mr. Reiss,” you greeted the wide man at the door in fluent French. 

Your voice was polite. Saccharine even. The sick glee that gleamed in Rod Reiss’s eyes upon noticing you was predatory, and you laughed internally at how easy it was to rope a man like him in. 

You didn’t even have to try. 

“You’re new. Not that I mind,” he replied back in French as an attempt to flirt with you, making you laugh again. 

“Where is Louise?” he questioned, making his way towards you at the front desk. 

“Ah, she is...incapacitated. I come from a different tailor shop. In Shinganshina.” 

“Oh my. I hope Louise is alright. Although I must say, I would be happy to visit you in Shinganshina. I go there quite frequently, actually.” 

Another grin made its way across your face as you remembered the additional information Zeke thought was necessary to leave for you. Rod Reiss was known to go to Shinganshina to solicit prostitutes, but an underground movement among the sex workers there prevented him from getting any further business from them. Just like every other politician you’d killed so far, Rod Reiss also had sexual assault allegations against him. The only difference was, sex workers spoke out against Rod Reiss this time - making it much harder for anyone to take them seriously. 

A rush of adrenaline raced through veins as you thought of that.

You weren’t sure why Zeke added information like that for you all the time. 

It wasn’t pertinent to the mission. You knew that. But it did make it easier to dispose of them. 

And you’d be lying if you said it didn’t help.

“Follow me, my love,” you teased kindly, moving your long, manicured finger in a “come here” motion to Rod, who chased after you like a lost puppy. 

You led him to where the mirrors were, pulling out a thing of fabric measuring tape. Moving it up to his neck, you started to look down at the numbers as if you knew what you were doing and smiled.

“My measurements should be written down somewhere in the store actually,” Rod said, his gaze focused on your breasts the entire time. His nose turned to the side as he inhaled the inside of your wrist - unashamed and lewd in his actions - and you grinned. 

Men like this were just too easy. 

“Are you questioning my methods?” 

Your plush lips pouted out in fake upset, and Rod’s tongue darted out to touch his lower lip at this.

“Of course not, dear. By all means. Do what you must,” he tried to say seductively. 

“Oh, I will,” you said, tightening the hold on his neck now. 

It happened in a flash.

Before he could protest and try to push you off - you made a makeshift knot around his throat with the measuring tape, and pushed him to the ground, sitting on top of his chest as you attempted to choke him out with the tape. He tried to push you off with his large hands, but you kept him down with the strength of your thighs as you sat on his arms. 

It was dull, strangling someone like this. Boring to see their faces slowly turn purple. Annoying to hear them struggling for breath. But this was what you had in mind when Zeke said had fun, and you were determined to see it through. When Rod’s ability to fight weakened, you let go of fabric tape and wrapped your hands around his throat instead. 

It didn’t take long.

He twitched before he went limp, but the job was done. Putting two fingers up to his pulse point, you felt for a while before moving off of him, satisfied that you felt nothing. 

Clapping your hands together, you sprinted over to the ties you were admiring early and pulled each one up one by one to get a closer look. Before you could even get a chance to do that, however, your phone rang. Balling up one of the ties into your fist, you groaned and threw it back on the display table.

“Yes, Zeke?”

“Meet me at Hotel Costes in the back alley. Posthaste. I have a new job for you,” his voice shook slightly.

You pulled the phone away from your ear, confused by the sudden nervousness in Zeke’s voice. How uncharacteristic of him. Grabbing as many ties as you could, you grabbed a shopping bag from underneath the register and unceremoniously tossed what you had taken in there. 

Surely, they all had to be decent even if you didn’t get to study thread count or color. 

They were 100% silk after all. 

* * *

It had to have been the longest fucking meeting of his life. Erwin was more long-winded than usual as he shared details of the crime scenes and their possible connections. 

The team had discovered a few things. 

The pharmacist at the place where Dimo Reeves picked up his diabetes medication could remember a kind, beautiful young woman who said she was interning for him the last time Dimo Reeves had been seen in public. He recalled to the police that the woman was nice. Easy to work with. Smelled nice.

It wasn’t hard to figure out that the assassin, whoever she was, handed that poisoned glucose monitor to Dimo Reeves there that day. 

Smell also seemed to be a common thread amongst the crimes. 

At least to Levi, it was. 

From the smell at Dimo Reeve’s crime scene that both he and Mike noticed, to the mention of smell by the pharmacist. Not to mention, the smell of the candles that were found at Dot Pixis’s house. The scent marker of marshmallow floated through the air as Hange recalled what she and her team found in it, and Levi had to shake his thoughts of the woman on the train again.

Why he was so hooked on that interaction, he had no idea. 

He must’ve been more tired than he felt. 

You weren't that special from what he remembered.

“I think we’ve exhausted this meeting as is,” Erwin finally said, clasping his hands together. “Thank you everyone for being here and for your efforts. I appreciate everyone’s dedication.”

The team gathered to collect their things and bustled out of the door, while Levi finished what was left of his tea. 

“Levi. I would like for you to come with me tomorrow when I meet with my informant,” Erwin said in his direction. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Bertholdt’s big, lanky ass taking his sweet time with gathering his shit. He wasn’t sure why, but it annoyed him like fuck to see.

“Because?” he deadpanned in response.

“Because I trust no one else but you, and I believe you will be of great value in questioning this young man. Can you make it?”

Levi grew silent, staring off at a point in the distance. 

“Where and when?” 

“Braus Burgers. At 2:15pm. Ah, good night, Bertholdt,” Erwin moved to the side to let his intern pass him. His blue eyes penetrated Bertholdt’s back for a while as the young man rushed out, and Levi tried to study Erwin’s expression and intent.

He was holding out on something, but Levi wasn’t sure what it could be.

Yet. 

“What do you say, Levi?” Erwin’s face was serious now as he met Levi’s gaze, and Levi nodded slowly at Erwin’s sudden change in disposition. 

“Fine. I’ll be there.”

* * *

When you had arrived at Hotel Costes and snuck to the back alley behind the building, you saw Zeke waiting for you by the dumpsters.

“You’re early. How was the train ride to Paris?” he asked, recalling back to when he last saw you. 

Brief memories of the man you had seen on the train flickered through your mind. You bit your lower lip as you thought of him. How nice he smelled. How utterly gorgeous you found him. How much he reminded you of _him_ , had he grown up. That was the real appeal. And it didn’t even occur to you until now that that was where the real attraction lied. You thought to mention it to Zeke for a moment, but you knew he wouldn’t remember who you were talking about anyway. Not like he ever cared either. Not really. 

“Beautiful. I liked the scenery.” 

Zeke rolled his eyes as his impatience didn’t give him time to banter with you. It had to be almost midnight when he sent you to Paris. 

What scenery could you have seen? 

Still, he didn’t have time to question you. 

“I stole some ties for you,” you sang, holding up the bag of stolen goods up to Zeke’s face with one finger.

“I don’t wear ties,” Zeke moved the bag out of his face with the back of his hand, making you frown. “Follow me.”

Your shoulders slumped at his sour mood. While your curiosity was piqued as to what was ticking him off so badly, you realized you didn’t care that much. Today’s work day would at least be fun. 

Zeke led you through some hole in the wall entrances in the back of the building before finally leading you into a room filled with cameras. There wasn’t a single person in there, and you guessed that Zeke had connections here, otherwise he wouldn’t have directed you to be here. 

“Here you are,” he said, holding up a pair of folded clothes to you. Zeke handed you some dingy, blue clothes that looked faintly like scrubs and you grimaced. 

“What are these?”

“These are the uniforms the housekeepers wear here. I figured it would make your job easier.”

“Since when do you help me out?” you joked, taking the clothes from him. Zeke’s lips pressed into a thin line, seemingly on edge about something, unwilling to entertain you tonight. 

“You will be killing this man,” he handed you a photo and turned his back to you to let you change. 

You carefully folded your Dior and studied the picture of the man Zeke had handed to you. It didn’t take you long to recognize him. He had been all over the papers recently for a sex scandal involving minors in his church.

“Isn’t this man a pastor?”

“Does that suddenly bother you?” 

You laughed, and even that got a chuckle out of Zeke.

“Try to make it quick, Kilian. Unfortunately you’re here early, and Pastor Nick shouldn’t be here until 7:00pm. Make yourself look busy until then. Meet me back here when you’re done.”

Zeke turned around when he guessed that you were done, and handed you some sneakers he had tucked underneath the desk.

“Room 102. Suite floor. He’ll be the only one there.”

“And the security cameras?” you pointed to the screens to your left as you tied your shoes. 

Shaking his head, Zeke smiled at you. 

“Don’t you remember who just replaced Dimo Reeves?” 

A slow realization dawned upon you, and you understood that Zeke was playing chess. The long game. Whatever that game was, exactly, you had no idea. You never bothered to ask, and you weren’t going to ask now. 

Still, you had to admire his foresight.

“Like I said. Meet me back here when you’re done.”

With that, he disappeared out the door - and you sighed, tugging on the bottom of your uniform. The material was cheap and scratchy, and you couldn’t help but be a little mad at yourself for showing up so early.

A quick look at the cameras, and you supposed the hotel was beautiful. It’d be fun to explore. 

Why not wander the halls until then? 

* * *

_The kettle whistled loudly as the water finished boiling, and Isabel padded back into her kitchen quickly to turn it off. She threw open her cabinet doors as she searched for Levi’s tea and smiled when she saw it tucked in a corner next to her hot chocolate mixes. A grin stretched across her face when she noticed the neatness of her snacks and drinks, and she wasn’t surprised that Levi had taken time to reorganize her kitchen._

_Typical._

_“Still take it plain, Levi?” Isabel asked as she steeped a bag of earl grey tea in a cup she had reserved just for Levi._

_“Yeah, thanks,” Levi responded as he walked back into the kitchen._

_He grabbed the piping hot cup from her hand with no aversion to the heat of the mug, and brought it up to his lips._

_“One day I’m going to sneak some sugar in there,” Isabel jested as she sat next to Levi by the kitchen island._

_“Tch. Try it and see what happens, you little shit.”_

_Isabel giggled and buried her face in her hands. The two of them sat in silence for a while as they sipped on their respective drinks, and Isabel couldn’t help but notice how tired Levi looked. The bags underneath his eyes, and the paleness of his face told her how exhausted he was._

_Physically. Mentally. Emotionally._

_“So...how’s Kenny doing?” she asked slowly, careful not to tread too far on the touchy subject. As expected, Levi’s shoulders tensed as soon as she asked the question. He held the cup close to his mouth and kept his gaze on Isabel’s microwave, which he thought needed to be wiped. As the steam hit his face, he closed his eyes and surmised that it wasn’t appropriate to give Isabel the same answer he gave Erwin. Even if it were true that Kenny were dying, Levi knew Isabel didn’t want to hear that._

_“He’s…got some young nurse looking after him day after day. How do you think he’s doing?”_

_“Oh, I remember you telling me about her! What’s her name? Penny?”_

_“Petra.”_

_“Right, right. Petra,” Isabel nodded and laughed nervously before slurping on her cup, making Levi raise a brow at the noise._

_He couldn’t stand the noises of slurping, chewing, eating, biting, breathing. Any of it. But he said nothing and wrapped his fingertips over the rim of his cup, bringing it up to his lips once more. Isabel’s eyebrows furrowed and she chewed on her lips carefully as she thought of what she wanted to touch on next._

_“Have you and Kenny...you know, talked?”_

_“About?” Levi answered in a clipped tone._

_“Just in general, I guess. Like catching up with each other or something...” Isabel cupped both hands around her mug, savoring its warmth in the midst of Levi’s sudden coldness._

_She was failing miserably at this, but she knew if she didn’t pry or poke, Levi wouldn’t budge on his grudge with Kenny. Not that she could blame him. But she knew he had more to say to the older man. He just refused to. And she couldn’t let him make that choice._

_The choice to be isolated. The choice to be alone._

_From the corner of his eye, Levi could see Isabel’s uneasiness. Feel it, even. He sighed and placed his cup down._

_“No, we don’t talk. Not sure what the fuck I’d ‘catch him’ up on anyway. Old bastard can’t talk anymore anyway.”_

_“Can’t talk or won’t talk?”_

_Levi scoffed. It was fitting for Kenny not to talk. Fitting, that Kenny would act like Levi was in the wrong and treat him that way, too. Even as he laid in a hospital bed, waiting to die._

_Yes, it was fitting to think of Kenny purposely not talking._

_If only that were the case._

_“Can’t talk,” Levi said, almost bitterly._

_Grimacing, Isabel pushed her cup aside and tried again._

_“It might still help if you talk to him, Levi. Really about anything. I hear it helps in the recov -” she bit her bottom lip as Levi gave her a deadly stare. “Alright, not the recovery but, the whole process….of….”_

_“Dying.”_

_Isabel sighed and closed her eyes at Levi’s short, blunt answer._

_“Yeah. What do you remember talking to him about before when you were a kid? That might help.”_

_Levi pushed his own cup aside and slung his arm over the back of his chair as he recalled growing up with Kenny. He couldn’t tell if half the memories were blocked out because nothing was memorable enough to scratch the surface of his mind, or if his brain decided to block it out on purpose. Levi could only recall one thing, and it involved a diner. As soon as a memory surfaced up, he downed the rest of his tea and shut his eyes tight._

_“No clue.”_

_“Can you do me a favor and just try?” Isabel placed her hand on top of Levi’s, gripping it in support. She gave him a concerned look, her lips twisted to the side as she took his silence for a ‘no.’ Levi glanced at her from the side, and slipped his hand out from under hers, moving it to pat her on the head instead._

_“How’s school going?”_

_“Great! I have two lab classes this semester though, so that’s kind of hard - trying to juggle everything with work and stuff. But it’s really good.”_

_“Mm. Still planning on keeping that shitty job?”_

_“That shitty job” was the bane of Levi’s existence. It was a housekeeping job at one of the fanciest hotels in Paris - Hotel Costes. Great pay. Shitty work. Shitty people._

_He hated that Isabel had to work there at all._

_“Yes, I am still keeping my job. I’m not going to sit back and let you pay for everything, Levi,” Isabel crossed her arms and pouted. She shifted a bit as she stared at her tiny yet cozy apartment. Levi had already paid for enough for her. No way in hell would she allow him to do any more._

_“Should just focus on school,” he said plainly._

_When Isabel frowned, he waved a hand at her._

_“Let me know if you need help with supplies. Books and shit,” he conceded with easy defeat._

_“You’ve already done enough, Levi. Really. I appreciate it, though,” Isabel gave Levi a genuine smile as she thought of all the generosity he’d shown her throughout their years of knowing one another._

_It surprised her every time Levi showed his tenderness and love towards her and others, especially knowing what she knew. His kindness, ability to empathize and give - it blew her away every time. A man who grew up with a fraction of love, able to give it to others in full._

_It was a gift._

Isabel sighed as she tucked in the corners of the bedspread, making sure the sheets were secure and neat. Smoothing a hand over the blankets once more, she realized she was satisfied with her work, and walked to where the dirty sheets laid. She balled them up in her arms and walked out of the room to throw them back into the laundry cart. 

Her eyes flickered to the end of the hallway as she noticed another housekeeper on the same floor as her, which she found strange. 

She was supposed to be the only one working this level. 

“Excuse me!”

Your eyes shot up at the sudden voice as you saw one of the employees of the hotel waving you down. Moving one hand to your back pocket, you rubbed a thumb over your switchblade. You hadn’t come across a single person as you explored the hotel and stole what interested you. You didn’t know how you missed seeing this girl.

Maybe you had wandered too far. 

The young girl pushed her cart of laundry and cleaning supplies over to you, and when she reached you, she gave you a smile. 

“Are you new here?” 

You nodded slowly.

“Yes. Just started today,” you smiled back, ready to whip out your switchblade at a moment’s notice hoping she wouldn’t catch onto your ruse. 

People rarely did. But you had to be prepared. 

“I figured! I’d be happy to show you around and help you before my shift ends. I remember what it was like starting here. No one tells you anything,” she continued, grinning at you all the while. 

Releasing your switchblade, you realized the girl in front of you was harmless. If anything, she was helpful to your overall mission. 

“I’d love that. Thank you so much,” you replied, mimicking the sweetness of her tone. 

“Of course! Follow me,” she said as she moved the cart past you to the next room. “I’m Isabel, by the way.” 

“Annie,” you responded with a grin, thinking back to one of your fellow Warriors. “I’m Annie.”

“Nice to meet you, Annie. By the way,” Isabel sniffed the air as she waved a keycard to the next room. “This is gonna sound weird, but you smell really nice.”

A light laugh left your lips as you thought back to Rod Reiss’s creepiness regarding your scent before you finished the job. 

“It’s not weird at all - thank you. I get that a lot actually,” you said as you followed Isabel into the room. You moved your hand to your back pocket again, tucking the switchblade into a more secure place so it wouldn’t slip out when you bent over. 

After all, you wouldn’t need it for a while. 

_What’s a little more role playing before the real work is to come_? you thought. 

* * *

Small, dull, repetitive noises. Those were the sounds that Levi despised the most. Whether it was chewing, breathing, or drinking - those dull, repetitive sounds would be the death of him. 

Ironic, that the current repetitive noise that was bothering him also signaled the incoming death of someone else. 

As the cardiac monitor pulsed out slow, steady beeps, Levi had to put his head in his hands. Isabel asked him for a favor, and here he was struggling to even try. What would he talk to Kenny about? 

There was truly nothing left to say. 

Levi’s eyes darted to the half-asleep man diagonal to him, and his face contorted as soon as his eyes made contact with the breathing apparatus strapped to his face. He clasped his hands together and looked at Kenny once more.

“...” 

He sighed.

“Must be hell to have to shit in a bedpan all damn day. Don’t even have the privacy of a bathroom,” Levi muttered toward Kenny’s direction. 

The older man raised a brow at the sudden sound of Levi’s voice. Before either man could make another piss poor attempt at communicating with one another, Kenny’s nurse Petra walked in with additional medication for Kenny. 

Levi shook his head. Fucking bastard was hooked up to a morphine machine, and that still wasn’t a strong enough drug to soothe the ache of dying. 

“Sorry if I interrupted anything,” Petra said bashfully as she walked over to Kenny’s bed. 

“You didn’t,” Levi answered flatly, turning his head towards the door. He looked down at his watch, hoping that he spent enough time here today to ease his mind. Unfortunately for him, Isabel wasn’t due to get off work for another few hours. 

_Fuck_ , he thought. 

As he watched Petra injecting Kenny with additional medications, Levi suddenly concluded that it never hurt to leave early to get somewhere. 

Anywhere but here. 

“I have to go pick up Isabel,” Levi stood up from his seat and grabbed his jacket, calling out to no one in particular. 

“Oh, who’s - ”

He grasped his keys in his hand before raising two half-hearted fingers up to signal goodbye. The door shut gently, and Petra couldn’t help but stare at the door in dismay. 

She hoped she didn’t say anything wrong. It was like walking around on eggshells any time she visited Kenny, especially when Levi was around. Although she could figure out that the two had their issues, she could never understand why the other Ackerman seemed to dislike her as deeply as he did. All she ever tried to do was make an effort. She was just being friendly, right? As she tried to do with all her patients and their families. Despite telling herself that, Petra felt ashamed at the gnawing feeling of jealousy that occurred in her stomach as soon as Levi mentioned another woman’s name. 

Kenny studied his nurse as she pulled away from him to put the last needle onto her tray, and lifted his hand up at her when she turned back around.

“Oh, do you need something, Kenny?” 

He closed his eyes to indicate no, and used what strength he could find to point to the door. Petra nodded slowly.

“Levi?”

A shake of his head to indicate no. Petra scrunched her face up and remained silent before understanding Kenny meant whoever Levi was picking up. When he realized she understood, Kenny nodded then made a faint point to himself. Petra nodded slowly once she caught on that Kenny was talking about “Isabel,” and that he was doing his best to mime to her that Isabel was -

“Family? Isabel is family?”

Kenny gave her a sad smile in return as an answer. 

Yeah. 

That’s what he meant.

Family.

* * *

Why you agreed to let Isabel whisk you away and make you work, you had no idea. But you were starting to regret it now. You lost count of how many bed sheets you and Isabel changed together, and although you discovered the secret to how the housekeepers always got them to be lockjaw tight, you were honestly starting to get bored. It wasn’t even the physical labor that bored you about the job, but its repetitiveness. The dull, dull, repetition. 

How did people stand to do such boring work? 

“Why do you work here, Isabel?” you asked as you sprayed some cleaner into the bathtub. 

“What do you mean?” she answered as she changed some of the pillow covers on the bed. 

“I mean, of all the places to be, of all the jobs to do. No offense, but you’re kind of young, aren’t you? This is a real shitty job for a girl like you.” 

Isabel gave you a sweet smile as she walked over to where you were, picking up some cleaning supplies to help you out. 

“You sound like my brother,” she let out a deep breath as she snapped on some rubber gloves. “But this job pays really well. I have to pay for college one way or another, Annie.” 

Her comment flew by you as you momentarily forgot the fake name you’d given her, but you shook it off and a small smile reappeared on your face as you aped after her sweetness. 

“What do you study?”

“Well, I’m majoring in biology but my goal is to become a veterinarian. I really want to work with animals. I love them!” 

The excitement that grew on her face was endearing to you. Now _that_ job you could see her doing. Not whatever this was. 

“I can tell. How do you balance the two? Work and school?” 

You didn’t care too much, but you were bored. And you had to play the role of a concerned coworker. That was what you told yourself anyway. What else could you do to pass the time? 

Isabel put down her supplies slowly, and looked over at you with slight shame. 

“I don’t. Not really. I’m not failing or anything but I sacrifice a lot of other things like sleep or time to hang out with my friends. Sometimes I forget to eat.” 

You frowned as Isabel wiped her forehead with the back of her hand.

That wasn’t right. She was so young. You shuddered as you imagined wasting away your best years cleaning for rich assholes in a hotel. 

“That’s silly. You should quit and just focus on school,” you replied, suddenly very serious. 

“Ha. You really sound like Levi. He wants me to leave this place and just focus on school. But he does enough for me already. He pays for both my apartment and some of my tuition,” Isabel’s face changed entirely as she told you more about her life. “Levi barely has a life of his own. Always so worried about me.”

She paused as she thought of when she and Levi first met, and how he didn’t hesitate to take her in and help her.

“If I have to suffer a little bit to ease Levi’s own crazy life, then I am okay with that. He’s...really done more for me than I can say,” she finished, smiling at you once more. You returned it and took your gloves off so you could pat her head.

“He sounds sweet,” you took the cleaning supplies away and peeked at your watch. 

“He is. Levi has really a good heart. Did I tell you he comes to pick -”

Shit, it was time. You didn’t bother to hear the rest, as you realized Nick was due to be in his room any moment now. 

“Isabel, why don’t you let me do the next floors by myself? Let me help you out. Then you can get off work a little early as a payback for showing me around,” you cut her off as you washed your hands, able to hear the faint sounds of Isabel moving the dirty laundry sheets to the outside cart in the background. 

“That’s so sweet of you, but I can NOT let you do that.”

Moving out of the bathroom now, you placed both hands on top of her shoulders and grinned. 

“Isabel. Take the rest of the evening off. Really,” your tone turned serious but you kept your smile. Isabel tilted her head to the side, and you followed, hoping you wouldn’t have to headbutt her unconscious should she continue to protest. But as the corners of her lips turned up, you relaxed. 

“Okay, but,” she reached into the pocket of her uniform and pulled out a wad of cash, “in return, you have to take half of these.” 

You hesitated as you looked down at her hand. 

“Aren’t these your tips?” 

“Yes. But I can always get more. I really appreciate you doing this. Even if I have to wait in the break room for Levi for an hour or so, it’s nice to just be off,” she giggled a little shamefully, and you shook your head at how silly she was. 

Naive. But sweet. 

“Fine. Whatever gets you to leave early,” you jested, not jokingly, but it flew past Isabel anyway as you never let the gentle, kind tone leave your voice. She waved goodbye to you cheerfully as she got to the door.

“I’m going! See you tomorrow, Annie - thanks again!”

“Sure. Later, kiddo,” you replied softly, slipping the money she’d given you into your back pocket. 

Peeking your head out the door, you made sure she was completely gone before dumping the rest of the dirty things into the bin, and rolled yourself to the elevator with glee as you rode on the back of the rolling laundry cart. Pressing the button to go up, you reached back to tie your hair out of your face.

Now was time for the **real** work.

* * *

Nick absentmindedly flashed his keycard up to the handle of the door before shuffling inside to his suite. As the lights automatically flickered on, he moved his hands to his tie and loosened it as he made his way inside, tossing his bags aside on the floor. 

The entire floor, just for him and the escort he’d ordered. Glancing down at his watch, he figured he had at least two hours before she was meant to arrive. Kicking his shoes off, he took a good look at the room and felt a strange feeling in his gut. Although nothing seemed wrong with it physically, he couldn’t explain why the hairs on the back of his neck were raised. Shaking it off as nerves, he closed his eyes tight and shut the bathroom door behind him. 

He was in desperate need for a shower. Once he was done, he didn’t bother to get dressed - just opted to rub a towel over his damp hair and walk over to the bed. Throwing himself directly on it so he could get a moment to shut his eyes, it wasn’t long before sleep overtook him. 

* * *

“You looked like you really needed that.”

A voice startled Nick, making him jolt up but he found he was unable to as he woke up to being restrained against the bed with ties. You had planned to kill him as soon as he walked in, but when he passed out on his own accord, you thought of the ties you’d stolen and went back to get them for fun. Nick yelped once he noticed you sitting on the couch opposite the bed. From the look on your face to your uniform to the knife you were brandishing joyfully in your right hand, Nick knew you were no escort.

Before he could make another sound or try to pull against his confinements, you stood up and shook the hand that was holding your weapon of choice.

“I wouldn’t do that. Nothing good will come from it,” you squinted at him, your tone laced with sardonicism as you waved your switchblade at him. 

“Please, whatever this is about, I have money.” 

You shrugged your shoulders and pulled out the cash Isabel gave you from your back pocket, looking at it with a smile. 

“I’m good.”

Pocketing the cash again, you walked closer to the bed. Nick started to cry as you approached, completely immobile upon your presence. While you weren’t the tallest, there was something menacing about you. From the way you strolled over to him, to the darkness in your gaze. He knew not to try...anything in your presence, but that didn't mean it would stop him from begging for his life. 

“Why are you doing this? Please, I’ll do anything,” he cried again.

“Like what? Quickly.”

Real tears started to stream down his face, and your brows raised up as you noticed he was genuinely fearful. 

“I - I - can’t think of anything,” he said between gasps of cries. “I - please - I have a family.”

“A family, huh?” you walked directly to the nightstand table and sat on top of it, spreading your legs casually like you were talking to an old friend. “I wouldn’t know what that is, Nick.”

The older man started to cry once more, and your face twisted in disgust as he continued on. Then you remembered not everyone got your sense of humor. This man was making this much harder than it needed to be. 

“Hush. Don’t take it personally. I’m just trying to do my job,” you knelt down so that you could meet his gaze lower, and stroked the back of your finger against his wet cheek. “This - you. It’s just my job. I don’t actually get a kick out of this.”

The man found that hard to believe, seeing as a little smirk grew on your face when you mentioned not finding pleasure in doing this. Placing your switchblade to the nightstand, you pouted and moved closer, staying on your knees all the while. Nick could feel your soft exhales against his skin, and the sweet smell of your perfume was the last aroma he would ever recall as you edged yourself closer to the bed. 

“I **have** to do this. Okay? I promise...I’ll make it quick and painless,” you whispered lowly, holding his face in both of your hands. Nick found himself tangled in your fox-like predatory alertness, and you knew when his features softened that your prey was giving up. 

You smiled. 

And Nick never noticed when one of your hands left his face to move towards the nightstand.

Quick and painless, just like you promised. 

You stood up and frowned at the mess you left - annoyed that you chose to leave such a bloody scene behind. But another look at your watch, and you knew that you were due to meet Zeke in the security cameras room soon. He had texted you again to remind you to return there as soon as you entered Nick’s room to set up, and you knew he would bitch if you were late. 

Wiping your blade onto the bed sheets, you closed it shut and tucked it in your back pocket right alongside the money Isabel had given you. You paused. 

You supposed Zeke could wait a while.

There were just some things that were more of a priority. 

And you had something to do first. 

* * *

Opting to drive to Paris today, Levi made it to Hotel Costes with ease. Traffic was nonexistent today, and he supposed it didn’t hurt that he blazed over to France as soon as he left the hospital. He texted Isabel as soon as he left, and to his surprise, she was off work early. 

That was a first. 

His fingers drummed over the steering wheel and he took a minute to look at his surroundings once he put the car in park. A person here or there entering the hotel doors. A valet to his left. A black car with tinted windows running behind him. He gave a sideways glance to his rearview mirror to take a closer look at the car, but a light tap on his windows drew him away from his focus. 

“Let me in, big bro!” Isabel said cheerfully. The car doors clicked and Isabel pulled on the handles only to realize the sound came from Levi purposely locking the door on her. “Hey!!” 

With a light laugh, Levi scoffed and tapped his finger over the button again, this time unlocking the car for real. 

“You can be such a turd sometimes, Levi.” 

He shook his head as Isabel got in, amused by her attempts at a shit joke. 

“That was quick. Normally you take fucking forever.”

“Oh, yeah,” Isabel commented as she lifted herself up to her seat. “I was downstairs in the lobby. I was going to nap in the break room, but I figured it’d be easier to meet you if I stayed downstairs.”

“Hm. Smart move for a dummy,” Levi replied light heartedly. 

“Whatever you say, Levi. How’d it go with Kenny?” 

Levi checked his mirrors and adjusted them once more before taking the car off park. Another peek at the car behind him, and Levi looked back at Isabel.

“I tried.” 

It was the truth. Isabel asked him to try, and he did. In the way he knew best. It’s not like she asked him to do it successfully. 

“How was another day at this shit palace?” he gestured to the hotel with one finger before turning the air conditioning on. 

“Amazing!! I have a new coworker who’s really sweet - her name’s Annie. She’s the reason why I’m off so early. She took the other floors so I wouldn’t have to!”

“How nice,” Levi replied as he waited for Isabel to put her seatbelt on. To anyone else, it would’ve sounded like sarcasm. But Isabel knew he meant it. Whatever made her life easier, he was supportive of. 

“She is. I really like her.” 

“Mhm,” Levi hummed in acknowledgment as he put the car back into drive, and pulled away from the hotel. 

“She smelled super good too. Is that creepy to say about someone? I feel like it is, but it’s true.” 

The car came to a stop light, and Levi couldn’t help but look over in confusion at Isabel as the car halted. 

His mind flashed to you, momentarily. **Again.**

The mysterious woman on the train. He thought of how you smelled. How Mike confirmed the smell was similar at Dimo Reeve’s crime scene. How the candle Dot Pixis died from apparently smelled like that. How the pharmacist where Dimo Reeves picked up his diabetes medication from also commented on the same thing - a smell. How Isabel was now referring to how someone smelled.

Seeing that the light had turned green, Levi shook his head and you from his mind. Clearly he was too fucking focused on work, because it all had to be a coincidence. 

He had no idea who was killing all of these piece of shit politicians, but there was no way in hell it was related to you. You were just some random woman on the train who happened to smell nice and wore nice clothes. It was unlikely that one plus one made two. Maybe he just wanted the math to be that simple. Then they could wrap the case up, and he wouldn’t have to be subjected to Erwin’s crazy theories. 

Levi shut his eyes tight as he thought of the meeting he was due to have with Erwin and his informant and suppressed a groan. 

“I work way too fucking much,” he said aloud, more to himself than to Isabel. 

She frowned upon hearing this, and almost protested, choosing to say nothing more when Levi turned the volume of the radio up.

* * *

“Don’t tell me you were in here watching the entire time. How _voyeuristic_ of you.” 

Zeke didn’t flinch upon your sudden presence, but he turned the chair he was sitting in towards your direction and smirked.

“How did you do it?”

Grinning, you skipped over to where Zeke was sitting and fiddled with the collar of his shirt. 

“You’ll see on the news tomorrow,” you slapped his shoulder and tiptoed to look over his head. “Please tell me those bags are better clothes for me. Anything over this,” you pulled at your housekeeper uniform in disgust, and Zeke nodded. 

“I figured you would dirty up on the job. So to speak. I have a car waiting outside for us whenever you’re ready. Get dressed, quickly. I’ll be keeping my back to you, Kilian.” 

True to his word, Zeke kept his back to you as you changed behind him. As you pulled a shirt over your head, your curiosity got the best of you and you looked at all the cameras. People chatting in the lobby. Two cars parked outside the hotel entrance. You narrowed your eyes as you could make somebody walking out the doors.

“You have another mission tomorrow afternoon with someone else.”

“UGH!” you tore your eyes from the security cameras and pierced the back of Zeke’s head with a look of annoyance. 

You were annoyed for a few reasons. 

Normally you had more time in between jobs. But for some reason, Zeke seemed to be running on a faster schedule than you were used to and you had to admit, you were slightly exhausted. You needed time to recharge. Rejuvenate. **Shop**. Not only that, but you had to work with someone else? 

You’d rather wear cheap perfume.

Ignoring your protests, Zeke continued.

“Think of it as training the younger generation. Do me a favor, too.”

“Hmmm?” you answered as you zipped up your boots, throwing your partially bloody uniform into the bag Zeke provided you.

“Try not to kill this one,” Zeke finished, turning around once he guessed you were done.

“What do you mean?” 

Feigning innocence, you threw your hands up and Zeke sighed heavily. He removed his glasses and wiped them onto his shirt, meeting your childishness with silence. You rolled your eyes when you realized he wasn’t here to play along with you today. 

“Ohhh, that. I told you, that was an accident!”

“Really? Because I remember you telling me you **shot** Floch,” Zeke challenged, walking up to you now.

“Yeah. I shot him by accident,” you explained, sitting onto the desk. Another shake of his head, and Zeke put his glasses back on, folding his arms across his chest as he looked at you. 

“Yes, well - don’t kill Eren by accident. Under **any** circumstances. Got it?”

“Gosh. Yes, DAD,” you rolled your eyes and pushed yourself off the desk, heading towards the door. A firm grip on your shoulder pulled you back, and you turned to meet Zeke glowering at you.

“I mean it. Eren is…,” Zeke paused as he mulled over his words and thought of his relationship to the younger Yeager. “Family.”

“Aw. I wouldn’t -”

“Know what that’s like,” Zeke finished your joke for you, rolling his eyes in the process. 

“You’re no fun today. Where do I need to go tomorrow, oh great one?” you pouted as you moved his hands off your shoulders. Annoyed by your petulence, Zeke pushed past you and opened the door. Pausing before he could turn the door handle, he figured it didn’t behoove him to give you an attitude in return. After all, he needed you on the job more than he needed Eren.

“Braus Burgers,” Zeke finally said, turning to face you once more. “12:15PM. Don’t be late.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am sorry this took so long! As you can tell by the chapter length, a lot of planning went into this and i had to make sure it fit. I hope you all enjoy!
> 
> THANK YOU FOR READING!


	3. I'm Gonna Haunt You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

>   
>  _i'm going to haunt you, haunt you til your dying day  
>  i'm going to make you, wish you'd never gone away  
> i'm there beside you everyday, through the night time too  
> and you can't get away, no you can't get away  
> _   
> 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **TW: Mentions of the word 'suicide', nothing is described in detail. Brief mentions of blood, and other violence.**

For the first time in a long time, Isabel could say she was looking forward to going to work. 

It was true that she mostly hated her job. A lot of that was due to the shitty pay, the stuck-up customers, and her coworkers whose sole focuses were to help themselves, not others. Being that she was the youngest and newest, she often got stuck with the brunt of the worst shifts. The “harder” work, and so on and so forth. Hotel Costes just seemed to bring out the worst in everyone. These were a few reasons Levi wanted her to quit her job, amongst many other things. However, Isabel was determined not to put any more responsibilities onto her brother’s shoulders so she bore the weight of her job day after day, no matter how hard it was to balance. 

Dawn was about an hour away from approaching when Levi dropped Isabel off at work. Although it was early, she felt more alert than she ever did for her morning shifts. She ran into the locker room with great speed once she entered the building so she could see the work schedule for the day. She felt more rested than she had in a long time. Thanks to you taking the majority of her shift the night before, she got to catch up with Levi in the car instead of napping for once, do her homework, and get a good night’s rest. 

She had to repay you, as giving you half of her tips wasn’t enough in her mind. 

As she walked into the locker room, she approached the cork board located in the center of the locker room just outside the manager’s office with joy. The schedule was always printed out towards the end of the night by the supervising manager, just in case no one checked their emails or texts for it. She never got a chance to look at it before Levi came to pick her up, and turned her phone off once she got home. Her hope was that your shifts would collide once more, and she wondered if you’d work a shift close to her schedule or at least an hour or two close to it. She was fine with staying a few hours to help you after all you had done for her. But as Isabel’s bright green eyes scanned over the dull sheet of paper, her hopes were dashed.

She must’ve read the thing about five times, so much so that names started to become a blur after a while. She looked up and down the page several times, but not **once** did she see the name “Annie.” 

It was odd to her. 

You weren’t listed as working, nor were you listed as taking the day off. You probably didn't have vacation or paid time off yet, so that couldn’t have been it either. 

Maybe Annie was your middle name, and you chose to go by that instead of your first name? Maybe you were too new and the manager hadn’t fully rotated you into the schedule yet? 

Whatever it was, something felt off. 

She frowned as she realized staring at the piece of paper wasn’t going to magically make your name appear, and momentarily sulked off to her locker. Isabel sighed in defeat as she started to undress and change into her uniform, but then she paused. 

Perhaps all hope wasn’t lost. 

If she came across a manager throughout the day, she could simply ask when you were coming in. 

“Duh, Isabel,” she giggled to herself. 

Her mood lifted once more as she put away the rest of her things in her locker, and she started to slip her phone into her pocket but paused once more as her fingertips brushed up against something that was already in there. Frowning, she placed her phone back into her locker and reached inside her pocket. 

_This can’t be…_ , she thought as she turned the contents of her pocket inside out.

But there it was, plain as day. 

A wad of cash. 

She slowly counted the money to confirm that it was what she thought it was, and rolled her eyes in amusement. 

Somehow, you had managed to return half of her tips back to her even after she insisted that you take it. 

Isabel shook her head and laughed, then stuck the cash into her locker to close it with a happy sigh. 

Now she _really_ had to find you again so she could return both the favor, **_and_ **the money.

* * *

_“Don’t expect her to do anything for you.”_

_When Eren asked his brother what to expect from you, that was the first thing Zeke said. He couldn’t help but scoff a little as he watched his brother pace across the room and walk towards him._

_“What do you mean?” Eren turned his head to the side and leaned back against the couch._

_Zeke furrowed his brows and pinched the bridge of his nose before taking a seat next to Eren._

_“Don’t worry about it - just listen to me. Also, don’t piss her off. I don’t need you ending up like Floch,” he muttered._

_“What did Floch do?”_

_“I never asked,” Zeke said simply. “I honestly can’t say I care either. He was incompetent for the most part. If anything, she did me a favor.”_

_Eren shifted in his seat uncomfortably as his brother carelessly brushed off someone’s death without the slightest bit of discomfort._

_He had only known Zeke for a few years now, and Eren still wasn’t sure what to make of him. He wanted to like him, but it was hard. Zeke was callous and cold. Calculating and uninviting. Secretive and strange. Eren only knew that the two of them had the same father, but nothing more. The moment Eren was placed into Zeke’s care after the death of his own parents, he had him under his thumb; and when Eren was old enough, he was roped into his organization. It was presented as an ‘option’ but Eren never felt like he had much of a choice._

_“...how do the two of you know each other anyway, you and Kilian? Why shouldn’t I expect her to help me? Why else would she be there?” Eren asked, leaning forward onto his elbows._

_His brother gave him a concentrated stare over the top of his glasses, and paused in annoyance. Eren asked too many questions. Hopefully he’d curb that over time, or he wouldn’t last long with the Warriors._

_“I’ve known Kilian a long time, Eren. I probably know her better than anyone else. I didn’t say she wouldn’t help you, I’m telling you that you shouldn’t expect her to do a damn thing_ **_for_ ** _you. That woman never does anything for anyone else in this world if she’s not getting something in return. Believe me.”_

Eren drummed his fingers across the table as he waited for you to show up. It shook as he did that, and he briefly cursed himself for picking the only table in the restaurant with a broken leg. He couldn’t get that conversation with Zeke out of his mind the more he anticipated meeting you. Being that it was his first job, he was nervous. He wanted to impress Zeke in some weird way. And maybe you as well. He didn’t want to let anyone down, but he was sure he would as he had no clue what his real ‘job’ was today. Zeke was less than helpful. Cryptic as always in his messaging, and unwilling to let Eren know more than he thought he needed to. Eren only had a picture of who he had to kill, along with his name. The rest, Eren was told, would be explained by you. You were there to guide him with his job, and silently, Eren hoped you’d guide him in more ways than one. 

The longer he waited for you, the sillier he felt. He stared at the cold plate of burgers and fries across from him and smacked his forehead lightly in embarrassment. He had gotten to Braus Burger’s earlier than anticipated, and ordered food for the two of you. God only knows why. Perhaps the need to impress weighed on him heavier than he thought it did. 

He sighed as his eyes scoured the bustling restaurant to try to get a glimpse of you. The restaurant was packed to the brim with customers, and you could’ve been any one of them. Maybe you showed up earlier than he did and you were just watching him. 

Were you the woman with blonde hair towards the front? The woman dressed all in red sitting by the burger bar? Were you going to be demure and shy? Confident and straight to the point? 

A million possibilities ran through his mind as he tried to look for you.

What kind of person were you? 

Eren sighed and picked his food dejectedly as he realized that searching for you was a waste of time because he had no idea what you looked like. As he ate, he got lost in his thoughts and he didn’t pay attention to his surroundings until a voice above him rang out. 

“Well. Aren’t you cute? You must be Eren.” 

Eren looked up to see who was talking to him, and when he saw who it was, he was taken aback. From the way you stood to the sureness in your voice, he was certain that you were who he was waiting for. 

You were dressed head to toe in sleek, expensive-looking black clothes, paired with black combat boots. On top of your head were a pair of cat eye sunglasses. Eren would’ve bet that was designer, too. Your mouth was painted dark red, and you had a mischievous grin on your face once you realized Eren figured out who you were.

“Uh...Kilian?” Eren’s voice was quiet, and the tips of his ears turned pink as he spoke to you. 

_Adorable,_ you thought. 

“The one and only,” you flashed him a smile as you moved to sit down across from him. 

You removed the sunglasses off your head, and let them hang from the collar of your shirt. Looking down at the table, you bit your lip in amusement before taking a better look at Eren. 

He was dressed in a black hoodie, black jeans, and Chuck Taylors. Not exactly your preferred outfit for an assassination but maybe you could teach him a thing or two about fashion. 

You recalled that Zeke mentioned Eren was ‘family’. With his long brown hair pulled back into a half-bun, and alert, bright green eyes compared to Zeke’s dull gray ones — you thought the two looked nothing alike. Despite that, it was easy for you to figure out that the two were brothers after you did some thinking.

You remembered that Zeke once mentioned to you that his father left his mom for some other woman and had a family with her. After all, that was the ‘real’ reason why the two of you met in the first place. You always thought everything Zeke told you was a lie, and you had your reasons for believing that. But the more you stared at Eren, the more it dawned on you that it was possible Zeke had told you _some_ of the truth. At least he did in regards to this matter. 

Eren looked about eighteen or nineteen. 

If you did the math correctly, it checked out. 

“How did you know who I was?” Eren asked slowly as he studied your face. 

It was hard not to stare at you. Apart from being pretty, you were also a bit of a mystery to him. Your face was deceptive in its appearance in the sense that Eren couldn’t tell how old you were. All Eren could register in that moment was that you had almost predatory-like eyes. Not intimidating like a panther, or immobilizing like a snake. But playful, like a fox. 

Still deadly if you really wanted to be, but maybe not all the time. 

“I took a wild guess. I just looked for the most nervous person in the room,” you joked in a hushed whisper before pointing to the food on the table. “Is...this for me?” 

“Uh, yes, it is. I thought - I don’t know, I thought you’d be hungry. Sorry it’s cold,” Eren hurriedly mumbled. 

“It’s okay. I kind of like cold food,” you shrugged, dipping your fries into the ketchup that was already present on Eren’s plate.The table shook as you did, and while the unsteady leg of the table annoyed you briefly, you shrugged it off. 

“You _like_ cold food?” 

“Mhm,” you nodded as you chewed. 

“That’s weird, wait - I didn’t mean that,” Eren finished quickly, throwing his hands up in defense at you, remembering the warning to not piss you off. 

“Relax, cutie. It’s fine. I had a very...weird childhood,” you said carefully with a smile. “We can eat but then we have to go.” 

You made air quotations on the word “go”, and rolled your eyes as you did. It was almost like you found the whole thing boring or silly. Like it was a _chore_ for you to kill people and not your job. 

While little conversation was had as the two of you continued to eat, Eren had to admit that he expected that. He supposed neither of you could talk much until the real job started anyway. But you were kind, and asked basic questions about him. Nothing that would’ve alerted suspicions of anyone in the restaurant had they intentionally listened. You obviously knew what you were doing. Sometimes you fiddled with the table and everything on it, but Eren just wrote that off as your own idiosyncrasies. At one point, you unscrewed the lid of a ketchup bottle then screwed it back on without ever ceasing the conversation, which he found strange. Although you were somewhat odd in your mannerisms, Eren had to admit that he liked you. 

The conversation you did manage to hold with Eren was civil, kind, friendly, and familiar despite having just met moments ago. It didn’t pry enough information out of him, but you managed to disarm his nerves with ease. Not once did he catch the self-serving attitude Zeke implied you had. Either you were an expert at deception, or his brother didn’t know shit about you. 

When the two of you were finished eating, Eren rushed to grab his wallet. As he started to count out bills, you laughed. 

“No,” you said along with a wag of your finger.

“But...I can’t make you pay for this,” Eren protested.

You sat back in your seat, marveled by his sincerity. 

Why on earth would Zeke ever pull someone as sweet as this into his shit? 

You drew in a long inhale.

“You’re not making me, I want to,” you smiled. “If you want, you can leave the tip, though. Only assholes don’t tip.” 

“It’s okay, I’ll leave it. Is ten okay?” Eren asked as he cocked his head to the side.

There was something so unsure yet sweet about him, you couldn’t help but be amused by Eren. He was nothing like Zeke in any way possible. Then again, you supposed they must have had very different lives even if they were related. 

“Very generous. Drop it and let’s go, kiddo,” you grinned as you slapped down fifty dollars in change. 

Eren slipped the ten underneath his plate, and the two of you exited the restaurant promptly. You checked your watch as you left and saw that it was 12:45PM. Zeke always sent you on these kinds of missions earlier than expected, and you knew the drill. 

“In here, Eren,” you gestured to the laundromat directly across from Braus Burger’s and indicated to Eren to follow you. 

Eren struggled to catch up to you, as you now appeared to be in full “work” mode. You moved swiftly and silently, and it was a challenge to keep up with you. He stayed behind you as you guided him to the laundromat, and when the two of you walked in, Eren noticed that the place itself was pretty empty. Shy of the elderly man at the front desk, there were no patrons. At all. 

_Strange,_ he thought. 

You caught Eren’s eye as you turned your head, and smirked, pointing up to the ceiling then to the small door right behind the old man’s desk. He nodded as he understood what you were trying to say, and continued to follow behind. As the two of you approached the desk, the older man moved out of the way without a word and opened the door for you, revealing a staircase. 

Peeking behind you, you could see the tentative look of caution across Eren’s face and shook your head at how nervous he was. When he caught your eye, you smiled again and jerked your head gently towards the staircase. Eren followed behind again as you led him up the steps. He watched in fascination as you picked the lock with ease with a switchblade and a bobby pin you had fished from your back pocket. In less than two seconds, the lock made a ‘click’ noise and you opened it with a satisfied grin as you took in the look of awe on Eren’s face.

“I’ll teach you someday,” you laughed. 

You led Eren into the small apartment located above the laundromat and began to look for the weapons stashed away, while Eren observed the room. The two of you were in a small studio apartment with minimal furniture. A tiny kitchen was located towards the back of the apartment, and Eren could make out a few dirty cups and plates here and there. A dingy old bed was pushed up to the wall adjacent to the kitchen, and across from that was a small TV propped up on a bunch of books. The whole place looked oddly lived in, but in a strange way. While things looked used, they also looked brand new. The wallpaper, which was a mix of turquoise and gold, peeled from the corners of the ceiling yet still looked brand new as if it had just been placed not too long ago. The couch was a shade of gray with stains on it, but no pilling on the fabric. 

The whole place was eerie. 

Eren initially assumed that the older man from below lived up here when he walked in. But the oddness of the place alongside what he saw next showed him that he couldn’t have been more off. When Eren saw you walk over to a trunk by the bed, he paused. Once you opened it, a cache of weapons revealed themselves to the two of you. Inside was one long sniper, a few other smaller hand guns, and boxes of ammunition. You wasted no time sitting down and setting everything up. 

“Why do I feel like you have a lot of questions?” you sang playfully as you got comfortable on the ground. 

Eren ran his hand over the back of his head out of nervousness and took a seat next to you on the floor. 

“Go ahead. Ask away,” you started to attach the silencer to the sniper and looked down the scope for clarity. “I know what Zeke’s like, he never tells anyone anything.” 

“Heh,” was the nervous answer Eren gave you. He paused and mulled over his thoughts carefully as he watched you expertly put together the sniper rifle. Your fingers moved with ease like you’d been trained to do this since birth. Suddenly, the warning to not piss you off rang in his head. 

He gulped. 

“Um. What is this place?”

“It’s supposed to be an apartment for Mr. Marley, the old man downstairs.”

“Does he actually live here?”

“Sure...when we tell him to. Imagine if you never saw the light turning on and off in this place.That’d be pretty weird,” you giggled to yourself.

“And he owns the laundromat too?” 

“No, cutie. **All** of this is ours including Mr. Marley. It’s a recent acquisition - this whole building actually. We don’t own that, though,” you pointed across the street to the restaurant. “There’s a reason we had to meet there first before coming here. We can’t have it all, kiddo.”

Oddly enough, Eren trusted that you were telling him the truth. You didn’t make anything cryptic, nor did you lace your answers with more meaning than needed. You answered him plain and simple. Not that any of that erased his confusion, but at least you were willing to answer him unlike his brother. 

“Any more questions?” you asked as you stood up, placing the sniper down onto the floor next to the ammunition with caution. 

Eren chewed on his lip, then met you standing. 

“...how do you know...my brother?”

You should’ve expected that question, even though you didn’t want to answer it. You wanted to lie, but when you looked at Eren’s sincere, boyish face, you found that you weren’t able to. Momentary feelings of empathy crossed your heart as you wondered what his life was like, especially if he didn’t know a damn thing about his own family. You huffed out an annoyed, short breath of air and put your arms across your chest, looking out the window while you spoke. 

“That weird childhood I told you about? Zeke was a part of that,” you stated plainly. 

There was an edge to your voice as you mentioned Zeke’s role in your life. Although it likely wasn’t the full answer, Eren could tell that you were still telling the truth, even if you were omitting some of it. 

He was sure you had your reasons.

“Anything else?”

Eren shook his head no, and you clapped your hands together in excitement.

“Okay. I have questions for you, too.” 

“Sure,” Eren watched as you walked toward the windows and adjusted the curtains and blinds. 

“Zeke’s never mentioned you before. Not until recently anyway. Any reason why?” 

Eren leaned against the wall as you continued to set up the vantage point for the two of you, then sighed. 

“We kind of only met a few years ago. My parents - our dad, my mom - died. I was put into Zeke’s care cause I was still a minor. I...never really knew what he did for work. Didn’t even really know much about him minus the few times my dad talked about him, and his ex-wife - Zeke’s mom. I just knew Zeke had money. When I turned eighteen, he asked if I wanted to join the Warriors. I didn’t know what it was at first...and I don't really think I had a choice in the matter,” Eren finished quietly. 

You watched him as he explained all of this to you, noticing the subtle way his shoulders fell and the way he dropped his head down when he mentioned his mom in particular. 

“So here I am,” he said bitterly. 

The mood shifted in the room. It was a mix of bitterness and sadness, and you recoiled from the discomfort. Had you known a simple question would’ve led to that, you wouldn’t have bothered asking. You always hated it when people got too emotional around you. It wasn’t that you were a monster, you just didn’t know what to say. You were never going to hug someone who was hurting or offer words of solace. 

Anyone who tried to seek you for comfort would’ve been better off talking to the peeling wallpaper in this apartment. 

“Sorry...about your parents,” you said, looking away from Eren again. 

“Thanks...By the way, I’m sorry if I’m asking too many questions. I just don’t want to mess this up even if I don’t want to do...whatever,” Eren trailed off then started to talk again, almost as if he were whispering to himself. 

He laughed. 

“It’s weird, but sometimes I wonder what my life would be like now if I never met -” 

Eren didn’t finish his sentence, but you caught on. 

In a moment of vulnerability, he forgot to watch his mouth. Were it anyone else, Eren should’ve been more careful about his last statement. Very careful, at that. 

But luckily for him, it was you. 

And you understood better than anyone else. 

You turned to him with a sad smile. Gone was the playful glint in your eyes, now replaced with something else he couldn’t place. And for the first time, Eren felt like he saw the real you. 

“I know what you mean,” you replied solemnly, “...but, here we are.”

The two of you let out a sigh at the same time. Then you continued to set up the vantage point, while Eren straightened up. The training flicked like a switch in both of you. It was as if the two of you didn’t have the most heartfelt conversation you’d had since meeting each other, and you remembered your real role in the world. 

You were Warriors, and you had a job to do. 

“I’m assuming you have a picture of your target,” you muttered, opening the window now. 

“Yeah,” Eren scrambled over to you and handed you a crumpled up photo. 

You shook yourself out of your momentary lapse of deep emotion, and unfolded the photo before you, eyes bugging out wide when the target’s face came into view. 

“What’s wrong?” Eren asked, noticing the look on your face. “Do you know him or something?” 

You studied the blonde young man in the photo before you, and nearly crumpled the picture in your fist. With his stupid round face and blue eyes, you couldn’t forget him. 

Porco Galliard. 

What had this idiot gotten himself into now? 

Eren waited patiently as you gathered yourself together, and you met his gaze out the corner of your eyes. You still couldn’t find it in you to lie to him. 

“Yeah, I know him. We worked a few jobs together. Long time ago though,” you rolled your eyes as you thought back to the first mission you did with him. 

The two of you had to pretend to be a couple, and staked out your target at a movie theater. You even played the role and took a few pictures in a photo booth, both for shits and giggles and for the perfect alibi. Then, you went after your targets. It was actually kind of fun, now that you thought more about it. 

“Oh...sorry,” Eren murmured, feeling your mood drop again. 

“Don’t be. Do you know why he’s a target?”

“Yeah. Zeke told me he’s here to meet with members of MI6. I’m guessing to give away information on you guys. That’s all I know.”

You set your jaw and turned away from Eren. ‘Motherfucker’ was what you wanted to say, but ‘okay...’ was the slow answer you gave instead. Resting your chin on the windowsill, you pointed to the sniper rifle on the floor to indicate to Eren to grab it. Eren noticed the change in you, and kneeled down next to you beside the windowsill, looking down the rifle’s scope to check the sight. He couldn’t tell if you were “sad” or if you knew the emotion at all, but Eren didn’t like the change in you. 

He was desperate to lighten the mood.

“Can I ask you one more thing, Kilian?” Eren asked slowly.

“Hmm?” 

“Why did you shoot Floch?” Eren winced as he thought of possibly being killed by you in the same manner you disposed of Floch, whoever that was. 

The question was childlike and full of curiosity, and you briefly wondered if Eren was like this a lot as a child. Curious and full of wonder. You gave him an amused cock of your brow and leaned in to whisper in his ear, making his head spin as he caught a whiff of your sweet perfume.

“He grabbed my ass,” you said plainly. “Also? he was really annoying,” you laughed as you pulled away, your mood lifted now. 

Although it wasn’t appropriate, Eren found himself laughing, too. You were so childish that it was almost amusing. Charming, even if that were a characteristic he could place on you. He found himself feeling better over the job that was to ensue, even though he wasn’t prepared for it. 

You were not what he expected at all, and he was nervous over nothing. He swore you were going to be mean, and crude. Maybe like Zeke, but worse. What he discovered was nothing like that. 

All the nerves he reserved over his first mission melted away the more the two of you spoke to one another as you waited for your target to arrive. 

_Everything’s going to be fine_ , Eren thought. 

* * *

“You know this is all gonna go to shit, right, Erwin?” 

Erwin tried to ignore Levi’s complaining for the majority of the drive. He was used to the shorter man’s pessimism, especially when it came to his plans. Levi believed in a quarter of them when Erwin was lucky. Hell, even when he did have faith — Erwin knew that Levi still had reservations tucked away in the back of his mind, just in case. 

“May I ask why you think that?” Erwin’s voice was calm and smooth with no edge to it.

“This is a public place.”

“Yes.”

Levi got distracted as Erwin pulled up to where the restaurant was. 

While Erwin started to parallel park by one of the meters just outside of Braus Burger’s, Levi surveyed the surroundings outside out of habit. He looked at every building, object, and person on the street and memorized what he could with what little time he had before speaking again. Braus Burger’s was located in a small area of the Rose district. Besides the restaurant were a bunch of other small mom and pop shops, some of which had living quarters above them. Levi noticed a few of them, particularly the laundromat directly across from Braus Burgers. He noted that a little light flashed on and off in the apartment the moment he looked at the window, and tilted his brow up at the sudden change in light. 

“Sorry, Levi. Was there something you wanted to say?” 

Levi shook himself out of his thoughts and focused his gaze back to Erwin. 

“Whoever or whatever you’re chasing, Erwin...All I’m saying is don’t be surprised when your informant’s brain matter ends up all over your clothes.” 

Erwin let out a hearty but dark laugh over this. Levi always did have a grim sense of humor. But there was a slight bit of truth to it, and that was the worst part. 

“This was the only way Porco would agree to meeting. I suggested bringing him back to the office for safety, but he was convinced that was actually more dangerous. I suppose we’ll just have to be on high alert,” was the nonchalant reply Erwin gave Levi.

While Erwin started to unclip his seatbelt, Levi remained still in his seat. He studied the other man’s demeanor with intent as he knew there was something Erwin was keeping from him. He had his own theories as to what it could have been, but who _really_ knew when it came to Erwin. While the rest of the world played checkers, that man played chess and he played it alone. He was deliberate about everything, if not painstakingly so. From what he chose to say, to how he chose to say it, and when and where. 

And right now, Erwin wasn’t telling him something. It annoyed the ever-loving fuck out of Levi because he knew he wasn’t going to find out until it was perhaps too late. Maybe even at the cost of someone else’s life. 

Whatever got Erwin to his end game, right? 

“I need you to do me a favor, Levi,” Erwin said seriously. 

Levi narrowed his eyes at him and exhaled. 

“What,” he said flatly.

“Pay attention to what he says. If my suspicions are correct, then I know that Porco is at the end of his rope. He wants help and needs a way out, but he cannot divulge too much information. At least not right now. But he can give us just enough for us to trust that his information is valuable. Listen to what little he gives us, whatever that is.” 

Another exhale left Levi as he folded his arms across his chest. 

More shit that Erwin wasn’t telling him. 

“Can you please do that for me, Levi?”

Sure, he supposed. He could listen to this shitty kid and whatever he had to say. Levi wasn’t a gambling man like Erwin, but if he were, he would bet that he wouldn’t have to listen for long anyway. Although everything looked fine on the streets, Levi couldn’t help but feel like they were being watched. 

There was no way this wasn’t a set-up, either on Erwin’s end or someone else’s, or both. 

The worst thing they could do was to take the position of a sitting fucking duck, and now it seemed as if they had no choice. Months of odd, seemingly connected assassinations with no lead but a lingering fragrance, but no goddamn names or organizations to tie it to. 

So although he had the sinking suspicion that someone was watching their every move, Levi answered with a bored, “Yeah.” 

* * *

“Put your phone down, Eren,” you scolded gently as you peeked out the window. “The light.”

A black car with tinted windows had just pulled up in front of the restaurant and you had a sinking suspicion this had to do with the mission Eren was tasked with. It looked like a government issued car from what you could make out. Porco must’ve agreed to meet with MI6 so he could snitch his way out to ‘freedom’. You scoffed at the idea. The likelihood of him ending up behind bars was the more possible scenario, and if this mission didn’t turn out well, he was going to land the rest of you behind bars with him. 

If you weren’t so angry with his idiocy, you would’ve felt sorry for him. You didn’t hate him, even though he was a bit of an ass from time to time. From what you could remember, he was alright. Sometimes he made you laugh. On the few jobs you worked with him, he was competent. Porco wasn’t a bad person in your eyes. Then again, in your eyes, none of you were _really_ bad. 

It all depended on how you looked at it. 

However, the price of your freedom was one thing you weren’t willing to give up. And if Porco wanted to get in the way of that, you were more than happy to let him be another casualty in your line of work. 

“Sorry,” Eren mumbled. 

You looked away from the window and back to him with an apologetic frown on your face.

“Don’t be sorry. Just...focus. Remember the training…you did go through training, right?” 

Eren nodded as you walked over to him to double check the silencer on the sniper rifle again. His eyes flickered to the street as he watched a tall blonde man and a shorter man with dark hair enter the restaurant. 

“When am I supposed to...you know?” Eren looked back at you, still shy and unsure. 

“I’ll tell you when.”

“But it’s been two hours now. We still haven’t seen him come through the front door.” 

You could hear the frustration in Eren’s voice, but you couldn’t blame him. He still didn’t know the nuances of all of this. And while you hated the idea of babysitting someone, you didn’t mind it when it came to Eren. There was something so sweet about him that you almost didn’t want to let him do the job successfully. 

“He’ll show up. We don’t want to get him until he comes back out, though.”

“So, what? We **want** to let him give away information? Won’t that end up getting us in trouble?” he tilted his head at you. 

A soft hand rested on Eren’s shoulder as you patted it with gentle vigor, and mirrored the tilt of his head. 

“Not really. It’s a false sense of security. He doesn’t know enough anyway,” you trailed off, pausing. 

You hoped that was the case. 

“Anyway, if I know Porco, I know he’s not so dumb that he’ll give it all away up front. He probably wants to bargain. We **want** him to think he has a way out. And as soon as he thinks he’s safe...well…” you made little finger gun gestures and the sound ‘pew pew’ left your lips, then you pouted. “Understand?”

Eren couldn’t tell if you were genuinely sad over the idea of killing Porco or not, but he could surmise that there was something you weren’t telling him, so he said this to you as a reply instead.

“Yeah.”

* * *

Porco fidgeted in his seat, and twisted the rings on his fingers as he waited for Erwin to show up. Although every hair on the back of his neck was standing up and Porco wanted nothing more than to run away, he knew that this was his only chance at freedom. After years of being lied to, that the only way _out_ was to be in the Warriors, Porco finally knew better. And even if it backfired on him, he was at his wit’s end. 

The only way out was through. 

“Hello,” a deep voice boomed out. 

His gaze followed the voice to reveal the tall blonde man whom he knew as Erwin, and standing next to him was a much shorter acquaintance with dark hair that Porco didn’t know. 

“Who - who is this?” he immediately blurted out, pointing a finger towards Levi. 

“My colleague. I believed it was better to come with company. I hope that’s not an issue,” Erwin said with a warm smile. “Levi’s highly trained and skilled.”

Levi watched as Porco shifted uncomfortably in his seat, and rolled his eyes. Porco chewed on his cheek as if he were thinking the matter over, then gestured for the two men to sit down. The table shook when they took their seats, and Levi squinted at the unsteady surface in annoyance.

The shitty kid couldn’t pick a better table? 

“How are you doing today?” Erwin greeted kindly, unwilling to get right down to business. 

While Erwin tried to warm Porco up, Levi reached across him past the ketchup bottles and yanked out a bunch of napkins from the napkin dispenser. He folded them up neatly until he had a solid square block, and immediately placed it under the unsteady table leg. 

No one at the table said a word, but Porco cleared his throat to wave away the awkward silence. 

“Before I tell you anything, I want immunity. For my friend and myself.” 

“Tch, that’s not how this works, kid,” Levi scoffed. 

Erwin put up a hand in front of Levi to calm him down, and leaned forward across the now steady table, folding his hands across it. Levi studied the way Porco continued to fidget in his seat as if he were worried he’d be shot at any moment, and shook his head. 

As if an assassination would ever take place in a room this crowded.

“I cannot offer you anything until you give us something first, Porco. I need to make sure the information you give us is true,” Erwin whispered gently. “May I ask you a few questions first? Then you can come back with us to the office.”

“Fine, yes,” Porco gritted his teeth in frustration. 

“Good. All of the recent happenings on the news…same person?”

“Yes,” Porco confessed, tapping his fingers across the table. 

“Their name?”

“I don’t know it, not really.”

“Who do you work for?” 

“I can’t say,” Porco buried his head in his hands out of frustration.

“What is the end goal of this organization?”

“I don’t want to give you any more information until I know - OW!” 

A jolt of pain ran across Porco’s body as he felt a hard kick to his shin.

“I told you, idiot, that’s not how this works,” Levi snapped. “Either you give us something useful or we walk out of here, without you.” 

Beads of sweat ran down Porco’s face as he realized what he thought would be his trump card would have to be given out now. He was hoping to save it for when he went into the MI6 office. Somewhere much safer. But then again, what was safe when an organization like the Warriors existed? Nervously, he reached for his coat pocket and pulled out an enclosed envelope. 

“The person you’re looking for...her photo’s in there. Her name’s on the back…,” Porco mumbled. 

Levi looked up momentarily at the mention of “her”. So he was right, the killer was a woman. 

His mind flashed back to the strange woman on the train, making him thread his hands through his hair out of annoyance. 

He needed to get her the fuck out of his mind. Levi looked away out the windows, focusing on the laundromat across the streets.

“I want to discuss immunity. My friend and I -” Porco started. 

Erwin held up his hand again to Porco, signaling him to be quiet. With a quick glance, he stared at Levi out of the corner of his eye, and Levi nodded when he met his gaze. Porco was a valuable informant. He didn’t hesitate to answer questions, and he knew better than to answer too much in public. 

“We will discuss all of that when we return back to the office,” Erwin nodded as he slid the envelope over to Levi, who pocketed it into his jacket. “But no more for now. You did good, Porco. You should come back with us.” 

“What if it isn’t safe?” Porco recoiled back so much from fear that he looked like he was shrinking. 

Levi’s brow cocked up as he leaned back in his seat. 

“Something you’re not telling us?” 

“Levi, please. He’s nervous, it’s understandable,” Erwin tried to buffer with a smile. He stood up and adjusted his jacket, before gesturing to the door to Porco. 

As they walked past the patrons of the restaurant, Levi noticed that Erwin had a satisfied grin on his face. 

“Why do you always look constipated when you smile?” Levi sighed, making Erwin chuckle. 

“Because we’re one step closer to the truth, Levi,” Erwin replied, ignoring the insult.

The three of them made it outside the restaurant in no time, and once again, Levi found himself studying the streets. It was almost too quiet for this time of day, and there was an odd stillness amongst the signs of living on the block. A quick glance to his watch showed him that it was only 3 in the afternoon. It was almost like the silence before the storm despite it not being quiet.

Once again, Levi felt like they were being watched. He ran his hands over the back of his head and let out a long exhale. 

“Come on, Porco. The car is right here,” Erwin said, extending his arm out to Porco so he could open the door to the backseat for him. “Please, get in.”

* * *

“I think I see him,” Eren muttered. 

You had been sitting with your back to the window for the last half hour, but as soon as Eren alerted you, you sprang up and placed yourself behind him. 

“Do I take it now?” 

You squinted out the window and saw Porco’s noticeable blonde head, a taller blonde man you didn’t know, and…

Someone else whose face you _did_ know. 

“Kilian?” 

You couldn’t believe it. Your jaw dropped as you watched his sinewy hands run over his dark locks, and felt your pulse quickening. His face haunted your dreams like a welcomed spector in the night. If it were up to you, you’d let his spirit linger in the halls of your mind forever. 

That dark-haired stranger on the train who reminded you so much of _him_ was standing there, plain as day, right next to Porco and the other man. 

“Kilian?!” 

You snapped out of your thoughts and placed both hands on Eren’s shoulders as he readied the sniper out the window. 

“Take the shot, Eren,” you said calmly. 

Unfortunately for Eren, it was too late, and your direction for him to shoot made the shot hit the car window instead of Porco. You watched as the chaos unfolded below, but ignored the sounds of patrons screaming and people scrambling. Instead, you took one last look at the mysterious dark-haired man who seemed to be scanning the windows of all the buildings across the street as if he were on high-alert, and you smiled. 

In an instant, you grabbed the sniper out of Eren’s hands and pushed him out of the way to the ground. Looking down the scope, you aimed down at Porco who was running to the back of the car with the taller blonde man behind him. He had his hands spread wide across the back of Porco’s head like a shield, making you laugh. The attempts to protect him were cute, but in between his fingers, and their fast movements, you found a spot. 

Your trigger finger was quick yet light, and when Porco fell forward on the street, you gently laid the sniper down. 

“Come on, Eren. We gotta go,” you laughed as you extended your hand out to Eren who was still on the ground, looking at you with bewilderment in his eyes. 

You waved him off then helped him up to standing with ease. 

“We have to get out of here, kiddo. Quickly.”

* * *

In the midst of people screaming and running around, Levi and Erwin stood still as they processed the scene before them. While Levi’s eyes scanned the buildings across the street, Erwin merely hummed in stoic acknowledgement.

“I’m calling a team out,” he stated firmly. 

Levi couldn’t wipe off the look of shock on his face as he tried to understand what had just happened. He wanted to run off towards the direction where he thought he heard the shot, but without a team, that felt like a stupid move. His eyes moved from the buildings, to Porco, then back over to Erwin. 

From the collected way he dialed the phone, to the way he didn’t flinch when blood splattered all over his clothes. 

It was almost as if…

“Did you fucking expect this, Erwin?” 

Erwin straightened up and calmly stepped back away from the blood that was pooling by his shoe. 

“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Levi.”

Levi opened his mouth to argue the morality of the situation, but a ringing of Erwin’s phone interrupted him before he could. 

“Director Smith, yes? You found - two in one day? Where? I see. We have a situation here as well, but we will come back into the office as soon as another team arrives. Thank you.” 

“Erwin, this is -” 

“I don’t mean to cut you off, Levi. But they found two more bodies. Rod Reiss and a Pastor.”

“What the hell does that have to do with me, Erwin? A fucking kid was just -”

“They found the last man’s body at Hotel Costes. We will have to interview everyone who worked there the day of Pastor Nick’s death,” Erwin replied slowly. 

“And when was that?” Levi’s voice was menacingly low, but Erwin was unfazed. 

“Last night.”

Levi silenced out the noise around him as the chaos continued to grow, balling his fists up as he did. He let out a harsh exhale as everything came together in his mind. 

The only person he cared about in this world was about to get caught up in the shit storm that was his life, and work. 

“Fucking -”

* * *

“Shit!” you muttered to yourself, wrapping your arms around yourself. “How long are they going to take?” 

You were waiting for one of Zeke’s cars on an unmarked empty street with Eren. After you finished the job, you had led Eren out the safe window in Mr. Marley’s apartment for a quick exit. 

“Do...they usually take this long?” Eren was shaking, but you assumed it wasn’t from the cold. He had been shaking since you led him out of the apartment, and you were partially grateful he missed the shot and that you took it instead. 

You couldn’t imagine what he’d be like if he actually went through with it. 

“Not really,” you shrugged. 

Eren stayed silent, training his eyes to the pavement below his feet. He couldn’t believe how calm you were despite having just killed a man not too long ago. There were now mixed feelings about you as he realized how ruthless and cold you could be when a job had to be done. But then his mind rang back to what his brother told him early on about you. 

_“Don’t expect her to do anything for you.”_

And while he expected nothing from you, you still did something for him anyway. You didn’t even think twice. Eren watched as you shivered in the cold, then gave you his hoodie without another word. 

“Thanks, Eren,” you grinned. 

He nodded. 

A beat of silence passed between the two of you, then Eren inclined his head toward you. 

“Why did you do that for me?” 

Your teeth met your bottom lip as you chewed on it, and you thought about your words carefully. Why _did_ you do that? Was it for Eren? Or was it for you? In the moment, you didn't think about it. You weren't sure if you shot Porco because he almost sold away your freedom, or because you knew what Zeke's wrath was like when missions weren't completed. So this was all you could say in response. 

“Because…I wanted to.” 

Eren kneaded his shoulder with one hand as he tried to process what you were telling him. You hadn’t lied to him throughout the entire day, and he didn’t think you gained anything from lying to him now. 

With a shudder unrelated to the cold, Eren nodded, and you tried to give him a warm smile as a black car pulled up to where the two of you were standing. 

The less the kid knew, the better, you supposed. 

* * *

“She doesn’t know a damn thing,” Levi protested angrily once he and Erwin made it back to the office.

“You don’t know that, Levi. Isabel may have important information for us. She was one of the few working around that time, and it’s possible she may have seen something or met the killer for all we know. If it makes you feel any better, I will interview her,” Erwin said calmly as he made his way into the interrogation room. 

Fresh blood was still present on his clothes, and Levi desperately wanted to tell him “I told you so,” but it seemed a moot point. If he knew Erwin well enough, he knew that Erwin was willing to gamble Porco’s life if it meant getting closer to something. There was no need to tell Erwin “I told you so” because Erwin already knew. He always knew. 

“You cannot sit in the room but I will call you in when I’m done questioning her.” 

Levi let out a derisive laugh at Erwin and rolled his eyes. 

“I’m her legal guardian, you twit. You can’t ask her shit without me in there.” 

Erwin adjusted his tie then folded his hands across the table. 

“Isn’t Isabel eighteen?” 

“That’s not the damn -” 

“Big bro?" a tiny voice interrupted. "Can I come in?"

Isabel’s voice was small and timid. When she was led into the room by Nanaba, Levi could see that she was shaking, too. 

“Yeah, Isabel. Sit down,” Levi said as he pulled out a chair for her. 

Isabel gave him a gentle smile, then sat down. Levi stayed behind her protectively, noticing the way her head kept turning towards Erwin, most likely looking at his bloody shirt. 

That fucking idiot couldn’t change into something else on the way back? 

“Levi,” Erwin warned. “You cannot be in here. Please. Protocol.” 

Levi shut his eyes in annoyance, staying rooted to the ground. Then he let out a growl of “fine,” eyes narrowing towards Erwin. 

“I’ll...be okay, Levi,” Isabel murmured. 

Although it annoyed the shit out of him, Levi knew that he had to leave. If he somehow influenced Isabel’s statement or testimony, it would be thrown out. They couldn’t risk that, especially if she did have information. Levi clenched his jaw and fists, then left the room, allowing the door to slam on his way out. 

He stalked his way out of the interrogation room to the small kitchen to make himself some tea. He tore open a shitty tea packet with fervor, and slammed every cabinet without meaning to as he searched for mugs. Levi pressed the button on the electric kettle, and sighed. 

“Is everything alright in here?” 

Levi reached for the hot mug and held it up to his lips, not bothering to directly look at who had entered the room.

Why was this big fucking Lurch always everywhere? 

“Sorry,” Bertholdt said. “I just heard a lot of banging, I thought I’d -”

“What is it with you, Hoover?” Levi spat out. 

Bertholdt let out a nervous laugh which made Levi want to chuck his cup towards the door. He pushed himself away from the counters, and moved to where Bertholdt was standing. 

“I - I - I don’t know what you mean, sir,” Bertholdt muttered, scratching his forehead. 

“Look, you -” 

“Levi,” Erwin’s voice interrupted. 

Too caught up in their own conversation, the two men failed to see their director leaning against the door frame watching the exchange between the two of them. It was rare that Levi displayed this much emotion, and Erwin knew he was on edge. Once again, Erwin called out Levi's name, making him turn away from Berholdt. With that, Levi followed behind Erwin out to the corridor, leaving his tea behind. He could hear the bustling of Bertholdt in the kitchen, only further incensing his annoyance but he tried to focus on the matter at hand. 

“Over that quick?” 

“Yes, I didn’t think it was appropriate to throw a barrage of questions at her. I got what I needed,” Erwin stated. 

“And?” 

“And...Isabel did meet someone. She said she went by the name ‘Annie’, obviously a fake.” 

Levi grit his teeth as he thought of what Isabel told him in the car the night before about her "new coworker".

They were right fucking there.

Whoever he was after was right under his nose, and even made contact with Isabel at that.

**_He was going to fucking kill them._ **

“Isabel doesn’t remember much of her face, but she said she smelled nice. That was about it. This woman apparently took the rest of Isabel’s shift, and my presumption is that is when she killed Pastor Nick. We will check the security footage to see what else we can find, and interview some other people in the meantime.” 

“And what about Isabel?” Levi growled. 

“Your sister is free to go. She can come back tomorrow for more written, formal statements. But I think she should return home with you for now,” Erwin answered plainly. 

A sharp exhale left Levi’s lips and his shoulders dropped as he felt the weight of the world piling onto him. 

“You can go get her, Levi. I’m sure she’ll be pleased to see you.”

“Right,” Levi replied. 

With that, Levi started to leave but stopped when Erwin called his name out once more. 

“When you can, don’t forget to open the envelope Porco gave you. I want you to be the one to go after her.” 

Levi could hear the rustling of dishes in the kitchen, no doubtedly from Bertholdt, and he sneered at the sudden noise but nodded towards Erwin despite that. 

He had his orders, and he was ready to do what was necessary.

But first, he had to take care of Isabel.

Once he got to the interrogation room, Isabel popped up out of her seat so she could give Levi a long hug. While he met it with awkward silence and a simple pat to her head, he didn't pull away from her embrace. When he felt she was calm, Levi jerked his thumb towards the door, signaling to Isabel that it was time to leave. 

Not a word was said between either of them as they left to go to Levi’s car. The parking garage was empty and silent, with a few cars left by now. It was late, and they were both tired. As soon as he and Isabel situated themselves inside, Levi couldn’t help but break the silence. 

“You okay?” 

He slung an arm over the center console and leaned forward to try to get a good look at Isabel’s face to assess for himself if she were alright, and she simply nodded. 

“I’m okay, Levi. Thanks. Just a little...shaken up. I can’t believe Annie -” she choked on her sentence as a flood of emotions washed over her, the same way they did when Erwin interrogated her. She wiped her face with the back of her hand and sniffled. 

“It’s fine. You didn’t know,” Levi said simply as he put the car into drive and drove out of the garage with ease. 

“I know, but...she seemed...so nice. I just can’t believe it.”

Levi glanced over at Isabel’s nervous form, and exhaled. 

“Yeah, well. Sociopaths. They’re supposed to be good at manipulation. You would have never seen it coming either way.”

A smile of reassurance left Isabel’s face as she started to calm down in Levi’s presence. Although it hurt her to find out that you were actually a killer, she supposed Levi was right. There was no way she would’ve known. Still...you were so normal. Maybe a little strange, but kind nonetheless. She found herself wishing that the version she met was the real you. 

A moment of silence passed through the car as Levi drove, and when he came up to a stoplight, he drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. The thought had been burning on his mind since Erwin first told him Isabel was possibly involved in this case. Even if she was just a solitary witness, Levi hated that she was involved at all. She wasn't going to like it, but she had to hear it. 

“You shouldn’t go back to work,” he stated plainly. 

“Wait, what?” 

“And you shouldn’t stay at your place either, not until all this is over,” Levi continued on as the traffic light turned green. 

“Levi, you can’t make me do that! I have to go to work, how else can I pay for -”

“I can pay for your school,” Levi answered through gritted teeth, feeling his patience growing thin once more. 

“I don’t want you to! Levi, I’m not a little kid, you can’t do this to me!”

The car pulled over to the side of the road with a jolt, and Levi put the car in park before turning over to Isabel slowly. 

“Big bro,” Isabel tried to beg again. 

“Don’t argue with me,” Levi massaged the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. “There is no compromise. You’re not going to work, and you’re not going back to your apar-”

“That’s not fair-”

“GOD DAMN IT!” 

Levi yelled as he slammed his hand down onto the steering wheel in a fit of uncharacteristic loss of self-restraint, making Isabel jump back out of shock. 

“If you wanted to endanger yourself any other time, I’d tell you to have a free for all. But right now, a fucking assassin is on the loose and because you have shit luck, you had the fortune of meeting her already. She knows where you work, and probably knows a shit ton more about you that she doesn’t need to know. You’re not going back to work or your apartment for your own goddamn safety.”

The tears pricked Isabel’s wide eyes as she stared at her brother, fearful of the tone in his voice. She had never seen Levi like this before. She thought he was angry, but the light reflection in his eyes showed a glassy essence of something else, too. 

"Levi, I -"

“I’m asking you to use your fucking head for once so that I only have to bury one person this year, and not fucking TWO. Is that clear, Isabel?” he snapped. 

Isabel gave him a quiet, slow nod, her eyes still brimming with tears. And although the expression on her face bothered Levi more than he could say, he said nothing. Instead, he put the car back in drive and drove Isabel back to her place so she could retrieve her clothes.

She didn’t say a single word to him on the way there, or when they made it back to his apartment. 

Levi watched as she shuffled off to the guest bed room in defeat and surmised that this silence would go on for a lot longer than he wanted it to. 

But it didn't matter.

If it meant Isabel would be kept safe, she could stay silent for as long as she wanted. 

He was fine with that. 

So long as her silence wasn't forever, he could deal with the silent treatment. 

At least the latter meant she was still around. 

* * *

There was a long silence between you and Eren as the two of you waited for Zeke to show up at his apartment, but you didn't want to be the first to break it. You wondered if he hated you now that he saw what you could do. An annoyed pout etched its way across your face the more you thought about that, and you stomped your foot down. 

Why did you care so much? 

“You should sit down,” Eren murmured towards you. 

You nodded and plopped down next to Eren on the couch without protest. Although you were exhausted, Eren seemed to be running on adrenaline. He kept drumming his fingers against his thigh, shaking his leg, and chewing on his lip. He didn’t understand how you could be so calm in this moment. Eren felt like his heart was going to thump out of his chest; meanwhile, you were slouched down as if you were tired.

“How do you do this all the time?” Eren muttered quietly. 

You tilted your head to look at him, then rested your hand on top of his to stop his nervous twitching. 

You paused. 

“I just do.”

Eren chewed on his cheeks and continued to shake his leg. 

“Yeah, but...doesn’t it ever bother you?” 

You sighed, then moved your hand away from his and down to his thigh, giving it a gentle pat to signal to him to stop shaking. 

“This is what I’m good at, Eren,” was the apathetic, almost robotic response you gave him. 

Before Eren could ask you for more information, Zeke opened the door with a sudden slam. 

“Get up, both of you.” 

Eren popped off the couch, but you remained seated. When Zeke shot you a furious glare, you gave him a smirk. Unwilling to argue with you in front of Eren, he squinted at you then waved you off before moving to sit down on the coffee table. 

“That went...alright,” Zeke said through gritted teeth. 

“What do you mean ‘alright’? We did what you wanted. Well, Eren did,” you leaned forward towards Zeke with a grin. “Kid’s good.” 

“Good job, Eren,” Zeke turned to face his brother, and once his back was fully turned, you made eye contact with Eren and tapped your finger to your lips to signal ‘shush’. Eren remembered the conversation the two of you had before arriving and nodded. 

“Thank you,” Eren replied shyly. 

“I’ll talk to you about payment later, but you did good. Really. Better than alright. Now if you could please leave me and Kilian, I’d appreciate it. I need to talk to her about a...few things,” Zeke’s tone turned serious. 

Eren’s eyes fearfully darted back and forth between you and Zeke as he registered the menacing sound of his brother’s voice, but you gave Eren a reassuring smile. It was nothing you couldn’t handle. 

“S-sure. And...thank you, Kilian. For all your help.” 

“Of course, cutie. Hopefully I’ll see you again soon,” you winked. 

Zeke rolled his eyes at how easily you made Eren blush, and when the door shut quietly, he turned to you. 

“He really made the shot?” 

“Of course he did. Have some faith, Zeke-y,” you reached forward to grab his glasses off his face then placed them onto yours. “Fuck, you cannot see anything.” 

“Give those back,” Zeke growled as he snatched his glasses back from you and put them back onto his face. 

“Always in such a lovely mood,” you giggled. 

“How could I not be when I’m around you?” Zeke said sarcastically. 

Zeke let out a heavy sigh, then leaned forward, placing his elbows onto his knees. 

“So...ties were found at the crime scene of Pastor Nick’s death. Police managed to trace those ties back to the same shop where Rod Reiss got his custom ties made from, and, coincidentally - where Rod Reiss’s body was also found.” 

“And -”

You weren’t even able to get a response out when Zeke wrapped his large hands around your throat; but you reacted quickly and pulled your switchblade out from your backpocket, aiming it toward his temple with a playful grin. 

“What the fuck were you thinking? Leaving clues for the police to find like a treasure hunt?” 

“I told you - the ties were for you. Should’ve taken - them when you had the chance,” you managed to make out, a smile still plastered on your face even though your air was limited. 

Zeke narrowed his eyes at you, then released you with an annoyed push back to the couch. You put your switchblade back into your pocket while you massaged your sore neck and raised your brows up at Zeke. 

"I _**told**_ you, I don't wear ties."

"Maybe you should start," you giggled. 

“It’s not funny. You may be protected, but you’re not _that_ protected. Especially not now,” Zeke scoffed. 

“Why? What did you hear?” 

“We can listen to it tomorrow together. I need someone to fix the sound. It was all muffled from what I could hear. But I know he referred to Reiner, and I believe he alluded to you.” 

You sat up.

Was it possible that Porco gave up valuable information about you? What did he really have anyway? Nobody knew your real name but Zeke. Nobody knew about your past except Zeke. You supposed you should’ve always known you weren’t infallible, even if Zeke suggested he erased all evidence of your past. 

What if they could find it out? 

You twisted your lips up in anger, then zipped up Eren’s hoodie with a pout. 

Although you wanted to joke some more with Zeke to lighten the mood, you found yourself unable to as you noticed the way he sat and shook his leg. You recalled that he was on edge when called you in to follow Eren on the job, and you could now figure out that it was due to Porco’s willingness to be an informant for the government. But it was different now. For once in his life, you registered that Zeke actually looked fearful and that made you slightly uneasy.

“What else do you think he told them?” you asked slowly.

“Like I said. We’ll see tomorrow.”

You sat back on the couch with a slouch, and folded your arms across your chest. 

“You need to find Reiner before it’s too late and kill him. Make it look like a suicide. Now that it’s possible they know something about you, **don’t** be obvious about anything,” Zeke muttered to himself. 

“Got it, boss,” you dismissed him as you stood up. 

“I’m serious. If my informant at MI6 is right, the man tasked with finding you is ruthless. He won’t let up until he gets you. If you keep leaving little clues around, then he **will** find you. I’m sure of it. It’s only a matter of time.” 

You stopped in your tracks, and thought about the two men you saw with Porco. The tall blonde man, and the shorter one with dark hair whom you had the fortune of meeting on the train. 

He kept popping up in your mind, and now, it seemed, your life. 

How lucky were you? Could he be the one after you? 

“Just out of curiosity...what’s his name?” 

Zeke sighed, and tented his fingers together in a prayer position before pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. He studied you with intent, then spoke. 

“Levi Ackerman.” 

* * *

By the time Levi made it to the hospital, he knew it was past visiting hours.

The closer he got to Kenny’s room, the funnier he found the situation. 

There was Isabel at home, who refused to talk to him.

And here was Levi at the hospital, faithfully visiting a man who could no longer speak. 

He was chasing silence. Either that, or it followed him. 

Life was funny that way. 

The hospital was dimly lit as he navigated the corridors towards where all the hospice patients were located. The faint, eerie slow beeps of everyone’s heart monitor echoed through the halls, making Levi sigh.

Poor bastards. 

When he approached the hospice area, he noticed there was only one nurse working the desk, someone he hadn’t seen before. He figured he would try his luck anyway. Even if the old shitting bastard was asleep, Levi could just make his presence known to Kenny.

It wasn’t going to be a long trip.

Before Levi could even make it to the desk, he heard a voice call out his name. 

“Mr. Ackerman?” 

Kenny’s nurse Petra appeared from out the shadows, with her bag over her shoulder and a jacket on over her scrubs. Levi was so late, that for once, he met Petra at the end of her shift, and not during it. He gave her a nod of acknowledgement which she returned, walking up closer to where he was standing. 

“We wondered where you were today. Well, me. I’m sure Kenny, too, though. Is everything alright?” Petra smiled warmly. 

Levi lowered his head and ran his hand over the back of his undercut. 

“I suppose it’s too late to go in there?” he pointed to Kenny’s dark room, ignoring her question. 

Petra readjusted the bag on her shoulder, staring at Kenny’s room with an empathetic frown, then back to the nurse at the front desk who appeared to be napping now. 

“Well...technically, yes,” she whispered to Levi. 

_Fucking great,_ Levi thought. 

“But...I’ll let you in anyway. He’s sleeping but I’m sure just knowing you were here will make him happy,” Petra continued quietly. 

With a light tilt of her head, she directed to Levi to follow her to Kenny’s room and opened the door for him. He entered the room quietly while Petra stood outside the door. 

“Try to keep it short, okay? 5 minutes at least. Any more, and Rico might kill me,” she joked, pointing to the sleeping woman at the front desk. 

Levi nodded, and Petra perked back up, adjusting her bag once more. 

“Alright! Well, good night, then, Mr. Ackerman.” 

“Levi,” he interrupted. 

Petra was startled to hear him speak. Levi was always so short with her when he did, and over time, she stopped expecting answers. She was so cautious around him that she couldn't even find it in herself to call him by his first name unless she was speaking to Kenny. 

“What?” she stammered. 

“Don't call me Mr. Ackerman. It's Levi," he stated simply.

There was no malice in his tone, but he was sure and steady with his words. Petra's face beamed at this, and she could feel the warmth flooding her cheeks at the subtle yet strong gesture past informality. While she didn’t expect much from Levi anymore, she at least hoped that he trusted her. Or respected her. After all, she did care about Kenny quite a lot. She hoped Levi saw that. And in this moment, the step of needing little or no formality at all felt like he did. 

She smiled. 

“Okay. Good night, Levi.” 

The door then shut gently, and Levi was left alone in Kenny’s dark room. He watched as Petra went out of view, then took his regular seat beside Kenny. He was snoring and his breathing was labored, but there was no doubt that the man was deep in slumber. Levi sighed as he observed the machines around Kenny, and slumped down into the chair as the weight of the day washed over him. The cylinders in his brain were firing all at once as he tried to make sense of the day he had. If he had to put it in order, it looked like this. 

Erwin effectively set someone up, leading to their death just so he could find some answers. 

Isabel crossed paths with a fucking murderer and had the nerve to be angry at him for wanting to keep her safe. 

And even with an envelope tucked away in his pocket that supposedly had the name and picture of the assassin he was looking for, Levi _still_ felt like he was running around like a goddamn chicken without its head. 

Exhaling, he held his forehead in his hands and rubbed the exhaustion out of his eyes. At this point, it didn’t hurt to look at the contents of the envelope, even if he thought the contents within it were likely useless. Levi knew he was good at his job, and by now, he was determined to track down the fucking assassin and take down the Warriors. 

He would make sure that Porco didn’t die for nothing, and he was going to keep Isabel safe, no matter the cost. 

Levi ripped open the envelope with one hand, and out of it dropped a long photo strip, the kind you'd take in a photobooth. Due to the dim lighting of the room, he couldn’t see much of anything. As Levi tried to bring it closer to what little light source he had, he could make out Porco’s familiar face at the top frame. He was posing alone with a wide grin on his face and waving to the camera. Then his eyes scanned down, and Levi almost dropped the photo right out of his hands.

Right next to Porco was yet another familiar face. 

One he didn’t expect to ever see again. 

The hair was different, and it had clearly been taken a few years ago but there was no denying it. 

It was _you_. 

The fucking woman he had met on the train. 

There you were, in all your glory. 

You were smiling, and very likely playing the role of a flirtatious partner, but Levi was sure it was you. 

If pictures had scent, he would’ve bet all his life savings that you were wearing your signature perfume. Despite the age of the photo, one thing remained the same about you, and those were your eyes. Ever the playful fox, even in your youth. 

You had haunted Levi since the moment he met you like a poltergeist, wandering the halls of his mind. 

From your scent, to your face. 

He couldn’t get you out of his fucking head at all. 

And here you were again, clear as day.

You were his target. 

And the more he studied your photo, the more incredulous Levi found the whole thing. 

He let out a laugh of disbelief and recalled Porco mentioning that he wrote your name on the back of the photo. Might as well know the name of your enemy, he figured. With one flick of his wrist, Levi flipped the picture over and saw your name written in what had to be Porco’s chicken-scratch handwriting in plain letters. 

“Kilian, huh?” 

At least now he had a name to put to your face. No longer were you going to haunt his dreams because Levi was going to take you down. You had come too close once, and lingered around the corner without him knowing it.

But now he knew.

Levi knew your name, and he knew what you were. 

And he was going to stamp you out of his memories and his life, no matter the cost. 


	4. Damned

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _you don't know me,  
>  i'm the one you dream of,  
> the thought that lingers,  
> just so._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **TRIGGER WARNING:** Implications of suicide and suicidal thoughts are mentioned in this chapter. I will add three asterisks like this *** before and after the scene happens to avoid anyone’s triggers, and keep that entire part italicized if you need to skip it. While nothing is described in graphic nature, I do not want to trigger anyone. 
> 
> For a list of hotlines and numbers available, please visit [this website](https://togetherweare-strong.tumblr.com/helpline) if you need to as there are various resources for you to reach out to if you need them. You are not alone. ❤️

You woke up seeing stars, your vision blurry and your head spinning. A sharp pain emanated all throughout the back of your head, making you groan as you attempted to get up. Blinking through your heavy lids, you surveyed your surroundings one by one. Your eyes drifted to the pile of clothes by the front door, then to the empty bottles of champagne littered across your floor. 

With one hand holding your head up, you glanced over to the side and noticed your laptop still propped open. You stared at the picture lit up on the screen, your lips downturned more and more as you recalled the night before. 

After you left Zeke’s apartment, you went straight home and removed your clothes at the door so you could jump into one of your silk robes. It had been a while since you had a moment alone to yourself in your apartment. You wanted to enjoy yourself. Your time alone. You remembered shuffling off to the kitchen in search of champagne. 

As soon as you opened the fridge to find the bottles of Dom Perignon — a treat you’d picked up from one of your various jobs — you popped the cork and took a swig. The bubbles ran down your throat, tickling and burning you all the while, making you feel the effects of the alcohol already. 

And you laughed as you thought of your life and how it was untangling. The last few days had been a whirlwind, but you never thought it’d end up like this. You never thought that the handsome stranger on the train whose face you liked so much would be in charge of finding you. Not only that, but now you had a name to tie to his face. 

_Levi._

It suited him. 

You liked the way his name left your tongue. You’d chant it all day if you had the time. 

A hiccup burbled from your throat after another gulp of champagne, and you tapped on your chin with your free hand as you leaned over your kitchen island and looked over your apartment. A quick glance to your laptop sitting on your fireplace mantle made you pause. 

Would it be worthwhile to look up information on him? 

You always _did_ like to know more about your enemies. 

Not that Levi was one. At least not yet. 

If you played your cards right and gave him a good enough chase, he’d never become one anyway. 

Grabbing a few more bottles of champagne now, you situated yourself on the couch with your laptop and began to look up his name. Sitting on your heels with your computer on your lap, you began to type his name out in the hopes of finding more information. And to your great disappointment, you found nothing. 

Nothing _substantial_ anyway. 

What you did find were some articles from his time in the military. You hummed and took another sip from your bottle, clicking through the articles and committing what little information you could find on him to your memory. He had a ton of honors. Made corporal when he was about twenty. Recruited straight into MI6 because of his stellar achievements. Blah blah blah. 

Boring stuff. 

It was all so boring.

You were about to shut your laptop completely until you came across a picture of him from his earlier years, most likely from the time he enlisted. He wore a neutral expression of discontent; the same one you remembered him having on the train, but it was him, alright. 

You studied the way his lower lip poked out. The way his shoulders stood stiff and straight. Looked at his thin yet muscular form, still visible even in his uniform. Then your eyes lingered toward his steely gray ones. They bore through your soul even through the harsh backlight of your laptop. His hair was still fairly long but he seemed to have acquiesced to having an undercut in the back; that made you laugh. Defiant but still a stickler for the rules in his own way.

Then your eyes flickered to his enlistment age. Levi had entered the military when he was seventeen. 

**Seventeen.**

You felt cold upon reading that. 

As the number burned in your mind, and a memory you tried to suppress started to come back to you in fuzzy bits, your legs began to feel numb under your ass. You swallowed the lump in your throat, and let out a hollow laugh. 

You initially thought it was just Levi’s face that haunted your mind. 

But the longer you stared at his picture, the more the lines began to blur and another face began to appear, along with all the memories that came with him. It was uncanny. All you could remember were bits and pieces. Whether that was an effect of the alcohol coursing through your veins or your mind protecting you from yourself, you weren’t sure. 

And you didn’t want to know. 

So you opened another bottle of champagne.

And another.

And…

* * *

“Another.” 

With a nod, the bartender grabbed Levi’s glass off the table and began to refill it. When he got back from the hospital, he had every intention to go back into the house. But then he remembered Isabel’s ire waiting for him and beelined to the bar a few blocks away from where he lived. It was a quick walk, and he could make it home with ease without needing to drive. He didn’t come here often, if ever. Levi was not a big drinker. It hardly did shit to him anyway. 

This had to be his third drink by now, and he still couldn’t feel a thing. 

Because that was just his luck. 

“Here you are, sir,” the bartender said as he slid Levi’s drink back to him. 

“Thanks,” Levi replied, knocking back a large gulp of whiskey once he retrieved his drink. 

He held onto the top of the glass and began to move it in a circle, watching as the amber liquid swam around. Even with the sounds of music blaring on the speakers, people talking around him, and more noises he didn’t want to register, Levi was lost in his head. 

The last place he wanted to be. 

But his mind raced. And he couldn’t stop thinking. 

He thought of Isabel. Of Kenny. He thought about work. The poor kid whose head had been blown off in front of him today. Thought of the way he raised his voice at the only person he cared about. Thought about Erwin, his dumb fucking eyebrows, and his inability to tell him the truth in full. 

But most of all, he thought about you. 

Your fucking face and obviously fake name, the confines of which were still sitting neatly in his pocket. 

Since the moment he encountered you on the train, you railroaded your way into his life without him knowing it. You made him stay up at nights, going over cases he didn’t give two shits about but spent time on anyway. The more he looked up the people you killed, the less willing he was to stop you. You made him look up perfumeries despite not caring about the top fragrant notes in a bottle, whatever the fuck that meant. If he had to read one more thing about ambergris and how expensive it was, he was going to throw himself into oncoming traffic. 

In truth, Levi didn’t care about you. Why would he? You were nobody to him. You were an unfortunate aspect of his job, and that was why he spent so much time thinking about you. 

It wasn’t until you made him yell at Isabel, that he started to give a real shit. 

You had inadvertently (or purposely) crossed paths with the one person he swore to protect in this world. So now, Levi cared. He cared about who you killed, even if they all seemed to be shitty people behind their public images. He cared about your stupid fucking perfume even if he didn’t know what brand you wore. He wanted to know what you thought about, how you ate, how you slept, and what overpriced designer brands you wore when you killed people. 

Whatever it would take to catch you, Levi cared about. No matter how minute. 

Because you were a plague. The new bane of his existence. And not only were you determined to be difficult, but you also seemed untouchable. 

You weren’t even a typical assassin. You left clear trails of yourself everywhere you went, and it seemed to be intentional. You operated in the shadows because of the nature of who you worked for, but you always made sure to leave your mark in some way in spite of that. Levi was sure you didn’t do any of that because you were stupid. 

No. 

You were far from dumb. 

If anything, you were too smart for your own fucking good. 

What you _were_ was untouchable. 

But you weren’t going to be that once Levi got his hands on you. 

He stared down at his whiskey once more, then drank the rest but not before signaling to the bartender for one more. 

The wave of regret washed over him as he watched the bartender make him another glass of neat whiskey. While he wasn’t drunk, Levi still knew his body would feel the impact of everything the next day. Still, with a sigh, he nursed his drink with what little contentment he could muster. This was the most peace he’d had since his day fucking started. 

This was nothing greasy Chinese food couldn’t fix the next morning. 

* * *

“Can I have extra duck sauce as well? Yes, I’m aware that it’s an additional fee. Yes. Thank you.” 

Zeke hung up the phone with a sigh, and furrowed his brows as he stared at you. You were passed out on your couch with your mouth hung open, no doubtedly dry from all the alcohol you consumed. When Zeke arrived and saw champagne bottles everywhere, and your laptop cracked open, he almost left you as you were. Then he ordered you Chinese food like he always did when you were hung over. It was a rare occasion that you drank, but the food seemed to comfort you and it managed to make your hangovers fade away. While he was sure your head felt like it was split in two, he told himself it didn’t matter because you had a job to do. You knew that. It wasn’t as if he could send someone else to go to Reiner’s. He looked at your sleeping form once more, pausing.

Then he shook his head. 

**You** _had_ to go to Reiner’s. There was no other option. 

“Wake up. We have work to do.”

“No, I want to throw up,” you groaned into your arm, not bothering to open your eyes again. 

You pressed your face into the velvet material of your couch and groaned again, making Zeke pinch the bridge of his nose. 

“Well go throw up, then come out and eat. I ordered Chinese.” 

At the mention of food, you could feel yourself perking up even though you felt a bit nauseous. The thought of crab rangoons, fried rice, and noodles was enough to make you want to get up. You’d only consumed champagne last night, and your stomach felt like it was twisting in knots. Leaning onto one arm, you held your head up in one hand while Zeke stared at you, his expression neutral. 

“I’m going to take a bath first.” 

“I’d say you need one,” Zeke replied. 

“And I’d say you need to go to hell, but look where you are,” you said as you got up to stretch, yawning as you did. 

Not bothering to reply to your taunts, Zeke remained silent and watched as you disappeared out of view and into your bedroom. He shook his head when you closed the door with a slam, then pulled up the clear audio file from the bug on his laptop. 

As you sauntered into your bathroom, you could feel the ache of your sins all over you. The back of your head felt like it had been slammed against concrete, and your eyes were throbbing. While you were sure it was nothing food, a bath, and water couldn’t fix, you still regretted what you did. 

You didn’t drink. 

Not really. 

You hated the way it would cloud your mind and take away your focus. You usually only drank for fun in the comfort of your own home. You couldn’t afford to be drunk and sloppy on the job. At home was a totally different story. But last night was a fluke. What was meant to be a moment of self-indulgence turned into something else entirely, and you could **never** let it happen again. 

With a twist of the knob, you began to fill your bathtub up with water. The bath bomb you threw in landed with a plop, and you watched as it began to fizzle and bubble in the water. When the tub was full enough, you turned off the faucet, shed off your robe, and plunged deep into the hot water.

Today was going to be an easy day. 

You had a simple job to do. And you were going to eat Chinese food on someone else’s dime. Then you were going to tell Zeke to fuck off for a few days because you were tired, and you wanted some days off. Whether he’d give them to you or not was one thing, but you were going to do what you wanted anyway. 

Telling him what you wanted was simply a courtesy. 

As you lathered up the water on your skin, you thought of your incoming Chinese food and sighed. You were starving. You hoped Zeke ordered all the things you liked, the oddly thoughtful bastard. With a roll of your eyes, you started to sink deeper down into the tub, but before you submerge yourself fully — an intrusive thought came flooding into your mind. 

You sat up and turned your head to the door to shout. 

“Did you make sure to order extra duck sauce?!” 

* * *

“Darn. They forgot it,” Erwin sighed as he rummaged through the takeout bags. 

“It’s fine,” Levi replied as he pressed a cold glass of water to his forehead.

By his fourth glass of whiskey, Levi knew he was going to have a hangover that’d make him feel like dogshit. And while greasy Chinese food always helped to nurse what little hangovers he’d have, he wasn’t so sure it’d matter if he had duck sauce or not. 

He just wanted to fucking eat or smash his head against the wall. 

The order didn’t matter. Whatever helped.

“Here’s your rice,” Erwin placed a container down on the desk for him. 

“Thanks.” 

It was early, and the two of them were locked in Erwin’s office ready to go over what had happened the day before. When Levi did finally make it home, he combed through the confines of his mind to figure out how to deal with...everything. But now that he was here, hung over, and tired, he only wanted an answer to one thing. 

“Tell me about Porco. **Everything** , Erwin,” Levi stated, his voice lower than ever. 

Erwin could hardly open his own container of food, setting the carton down with a wry smile. 

“Well. Good morning to you, too.”

Levi didn’t respond, making Erwin laugh in amusement. He leaned back in his seat and folded his hands across his desk, giving Levi a straight face. 

“Remind me. When did you join us again?” 

Levi chewed on his food slowly, narrowing his eyes at Erwin all the while. This was not what he meant and the bushy-browed fuck knew that. As always, he was skirting around the issue before getting to what people actually cared about. However, with his head still pounding, Levi couldn’t find it in himself to tell him to get on with it. So he didn’t. 

“28. You should know. You were the one who hired me.” 

“Ah, yes,” Erwin laughed. “5 years is a long time, forgive me. Well. Prior to your arrival, I had been placed on a case right here in Shinganshina. Our intelligence operatives had picked up information from an underground organization known as the Warriors.” 

Levi didn’t respond again, urging Erwin to go on. 

“We suspected then that their goal was to infiltrate governments and other powerful organizations across the world.”

Erwin paused purposely, watching Levi as he digested the information before him. In a knowing silence, Levi nodded and Erwin continued. 

“We managed to find this out because I was able to acquire a suspect. His name was Reiner Braun. Only 16 years old at the time.” 

More silence as Levi listened to what Erwin was telling him, putting the pieces together from earlier conversations they had. He remembered Erwin telling him at first that they didn’t know who was committing these murders. Had no idea of the connections. But, as Levi suspected, Erwin knew more than he let on. He was just waiting to see how to play it all out. Like he always did. Even at the expense of others. 

Anything for the truth, right? 

“So?” Levi muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose. 

“I was the one who interrogated him. Being that he was a young kid, I didn’t want to frighten him. He couldn’t tell us much, but he was scared. He asked for immunity. Asked for protection for his friend. I told him we could iron out those details as soon as he gave me what I needed. We kept him in a holding cell, and he was meant to return to us the next day.” 

“And then what happened?” Levi monotoned. 

“He was clear of all his charges the very next day. Disappeared. My superior at the time told me we could not hold him due to his age, nor could we question him. The entire case was thrown away without my say.” 

While Levi could see where Erwin was finally going with this, he wanted him to get to the fucking point. And sensing his growing agitation, Erwin finally did. He leaned forward onto his desk to get closer to Levi, and spoke in hushed whispers. 

“He referred to his friend by name. Porco Galliard was the name he gave me. I never forgot it.” 

“So you never forgot about him but you were willing to let him get killed?” Levi grit his teeth, unable to find any more patience within himself. 

“No. It was an unfortunate incident I didn’t wish to see happen, but I am not surprised it did,” Erwin said grimly. “I will have to live with that on my conscience for the rest of my life. What happened with Porco proved one thing to me, and I cannot let this chance go.” 

He paused again, no doubt for dramatic effect making Levi roll his eyes. 

“Get to it, Erwin.” 

Erwin let out an amused scoff before turning serious again.

“I believe we have a mole in this office. Someone who works directly for the organization we are after. That is why what happened, happened. I believe it was to send a message. Both to us, and to anyone else who may want to defect from their organization.” 

“And I suppose you have your ‘suspicions’ on who the mole is?” 

Erwin paused, looking around his office as if he thought his entire office could turn into the mole, then spoke again. 

“I do. I cannot divulge who yet as I want solid evidence, not conjectures. I am positive, however, that the friend who Porco was referring to was Reiner. I believe the two of them were close. Both wanted immunity when given the chance, and both wanted to make sure the other was okay.” 

“And?” 

Erwin laughed at Levi’s impatience. 

“And I believe they will be after Reiner next. I know I told you it was imperative that you go after their top assassin. It still is. But if I can guess their next move correctly, I believe we can achieve two goals. We can save Reiner, and you can find that woman Porco -” 

“Kilian,” Levi interrupted. 

“I’m sorry?” 

“Kilian. That’s her name. That’s what it says on the picture.”

He took the picture of you out from his pocket and threw it onto Erwin’s desk. With raised brows and an expression that annoyed the shit out of Levi, Erwin paused for a moment. 

“I see...Well. I believe that if we find Reiner, we can also find her. Kilian.” 

Erwin looked down at your photo, and so did Levi, albeit much longer than Erwin did. With a scoff, Levi then snatched the photo back to place into his pockets. 

“And how do you want me to find this other kid?” 

Levi got up from his seat and began to clear the boxes of empty takeout containers on Erwin’s desk. When he got to Erwin’s still full, now tepid noodles, he rolled his eyes and shoved the container into Erwin’s mini fridge. He was sure Erwin wasn’t going to eat for the day. But it’d be there for the dumb bastard if he wanted it. 

Erwin watched in amusement as Levi began to clean his office, bypassing the takeout containers and moving to the bookshelf now. He could hear Levi’s huffs of annoyed breath, but kept silent to see how long his patience ran. With a shake of his head, Erwin laughed, then pulled something out of his desk drawer. 

“We have Porco’s phone.”

Levi stopped fussing over the dust on Erwin’s bookshelf, and turned towards him slowly. 

“Are you supposed to have that?” 

“Technically, no. But I made an argument that it may help. If you bring this to our intelligence office, I believe they may be able to help you track down Reiner. He texted Porco yesterday. While I am sure Reiner is smart enough to have changed phones by now, I don’t believe he is fast enough to be completely out of reach.”

Erwin got up from his desk and stepped towards Levi, handing him the phone which was encased in a plastic bag. Levi merely blinked when he saw the spots of blood still speckled on top of the phone screen. 

“There is a young man down there who is a savant with computers. His name is Armin Arlert. I’d like for you to go see him.” 

Levi grabbed the phone from Erwin and stared at it for a long time before cocking a brow up at Erwin. 

“I have no idea how it all works, Levi. This is why we employ other people to do this kind of stuff. Trust me. Armin can help you.”

The two men stood there in silence while they pondered the weight of their conversation with each other. 

“And the mole?”

“That...I will tell you about that over time. I have a plan,” Erwin furrowed his brows. “Come on. I’ll accompany you down there.” 

Levi rolled his eyes and began to head for the door. Of course Erwin had a plan. And while his hangover was starting to fade and the pain in his temples no longer throbbed incessantly, Levi still found himself too tired to question the other man any longer. He let Erwin step ahead of him and followed behind as he directed him down to where the intelligence office was. 

Tucked down in a basement below the building, Erwin opened the door for Levi, revealing all of the hackers who worked downstairs. Having only run into them here and there, Levi never actually ventured down here himself but they looked exactly like what he expected them to look like. Tired with bags under their eyes, typing behind their computers at speeds he couldn’t even fathom. 

“The young man right there,” Erwin pointed to a boy with short blonde hair who looked no older than nineteen. 

Levi tilted his brows up upon seeing him. 

“I understand your reservations, but I assure you he’s a genius,” Erwin finished, looking down at his watch. “I have a meeting to get to, but tell him I sent you. Good luck, Levi. Keep me updated.” 

He patted Levi on the back then promptly ran back up the steps. Levi watched as Erwin left, his eyes trained on his back. He wondered how much Erwin kept from him and how much Erwin actually knew, but again, he felt too tired to care. 

All he wanted was to catch you. 

If he could do that, then he’d be happy. 

And if this kid Armin was able to help him do that, Levi was more than willing to let him. 

He slipped his hands into his pockets then walked to where Armin’s desk was. As Levi made his way over, he watched as Armin typed away. His bright blue eyes were honed in on the screen in front of him, completely unaware of the world around him. Clearing his throat to get his attention, Levi stood before Armin’s desk mustering more command than Armin expected. 

“Um, hello, sir. How can I help you?” 

Armin scratched at his forehead as he stared at the man before him. While he had yet to do any work for Levi personally, his reputation in the office was still well known. He was one of MI6’s top agents for a reason. After all, it was why Director Smith recruited him in the first place. 

“Erwin sent me,” Levi said holding up Porco’s phone, still in its bag. “I need help finding someone. According to Eyebrows, you can help me do that.” 

“Sure. Who do you need me to look for?” Armin reached out for the phone and Levi set it down on his desk, not missing the way Armin flinched when he noticed the specks of blood. 

“I’m assuming you know not to take it out of the bag.” 

Armin nodded. 

“This belonged to an informant,” Levi’s jaw clenched as he thought of Porco and everything that happened yesterday. 

Closing his eyes, he shook his head and paused. 

“If you look back, you should see some texts from someone named Reiner. I don’t know if he’s even using the same phone anymore or how the fuck you might find this kid. But Erwin said you can figure it out. So, can you?” 

Armin stared at the phone for a long while, and Levi watched with interest as a look of determination etched its way onto Armin’s face. 

“It’ll be tough...but I can find his last location and triangulate where he might have gone afterwards. Even if he got a burner phone, people normally don’t move too far from where they last were.” 

It sounded like a foreign language to Levi, but he trusted Erwin enough to know that Armin was capable. Even with the thought of a mole in the office, it was evident that Erwin didn’t think of Armin to be one. Or maybe he did and this was yet another test. Whatever the occasion, Levi couldn’t think about it anymore. 

“Alright. Call me when you find it,” Levi said, putting his card down onto Armin’s table. “I just need his location.” 

“Of course, sir. On it.” 

Levi put his hands back in his pockets and began to walk away, but paused when his fingers grazed over the photo still burning a hole into his pocket. 

He didn’t understand shit about technology, but it was clear Armin did. While he didn’t come off as confident at first glance, the quickness with which he answered Levi’s questions made him realize one thing. Armin was confident in his work even if he wasn’t always confident in himself. **He** understood technology better than Levi ever would. And as Levi ran his index finger over your photo, he contemplated. 

“Arlert,” Levi called back. 

Armin jolted upwards in his seat. 

“Sir?”

With narrowed eyes, Levi studied every other person in the office, curious to know if they were the mole. While it was risky to give Armin this additional job, it wasn’t like Erwin gave him much to go on. Levi **needed** to know more about you. Your past. Your life. Whatever he could fucking find, he wanted to find. But he couldn’t do it alone. With a hushed voice, he rubbed the photo between his thumb and forefinger. 

“All this technology and shit you have down here...is it possible for you to find someone based off of one photo?”

“Like facial recognition technology?” Armin piped up in excitement.

When Levi's eyes bugged out towards Armin, he sank in his seat and understood the silent signal to keep quiet. 

“If that’s what you mean, then yes. In a way. I can run it through the system and match to similar photos in our database or on the internet if you need a broader search,” Armin whispered now. 

A tired sigh left Levi. This was a last resort move. In fact, he was certain there wasn’t much on you. Someone like you had to have erased every last bit of her past away. If not you, then the people you worked for. But Levi knew no one was untouchable. Even the cleverest person in the room would slip up from time to time. He had to try. And he hoped whoever you worked for fucked up at least once or twice in their life. Or maybe you did. 

He placed your photo down on Armin’s desk.

“You probably won’t find much. But whatever you can find on this woman,” he tapped his finger onto your face. “I want to know. Don’t bother with the name on the back, it’s probably fake.” 

Armin tilted his head to take a closer look at your photo. He chewed on his lip, hesitant to speak.

“Um, sir. If it’s possible, do you think you can narrow it down?” 

“How?” 

“Well any way you can think of. For example, do you want me to look into the prison database?” 

“No. I doubt someone like her has ever been caught,” Levi replied quickly, thinking back to the smug, brazen way you carried yourself on the train. 

“I see. It would help if I had any kind of direction, though. It just makes the search quicker,” Armin blabbed out, shrinking while he did. 

Levi couldn’t blame the kid for being intimidated, but he was still annoyed. Not by him, but by you. 

Why were you so fucking elusive? 

He tried to rack his brain for the one time he encountered you, and thought of the questions that ran through his mind every night when he _did_ think of you. 

What kind of person were you?

Where did you come from?

Who or what made you this way? 

The more he thought about it, the closer he was to jamming his foot through someone’s computer monitor. Then he _really_ thought about you. 

Thought about the way you carried yourself. The way you flaunted your wealth, your smarts, and yourself. If you came from a life of luxury, you would be quieter about what you had. But you didn’t do that. What he could remember was that you wore vintage Dior. You made sure to show it off. You weren’t just showing yourself off, you were showing how far you’d come from wherever you were. Wherever that was, it couldn’t have been much. You couldn’t have come from shit. Why else would you show off as much as you did if that were the case? 

His jaw clicked. 

“Check local orphanages,” Levi finally said. 

“Any specific year?” 

Closing his eyes, Levi thought back to your face. You were youthful looking but it was a deception, just like everything else about you. You weren’t naive enough to be too young. And while he wasn’t a betting man, based on the way you spoke to him, Levi could surmise you were close to his age. Too quick-witted to be too young. You lived some kind of life. While he had no idea what kind, he could speculate it wasn’t a short one or an easy one. 

“It’s a guess. I have no idea when she might have been placed in there.” 

“Even a guess helps. Most orphanages keep birth certificates,” Armin answered. 

Levi tried to picture you again, reimagining every feature of your face. The photo on Armin’s desk didn’t do the justice of meeting you in person. You were a chameleon and it was easier for him to think of you than it was for him to look at you. He exhaled heavily as he brought your face to mind again. 

“91-92. She can’t be older than 30. That help?” Levi grumbled. 

Armin gave him a happy nod and began to move your picture across his desk, when Levi grabbed his wrist to stop him. 

“Oi. This?” he looked down to your photo. “Off the books. Stays between us. Got it?” 

While confused at the nature of the assignment, Armin still nodded. He was more honored to be trusted by Levi than he was curious. 

“Thanks, kid,” Levi said. 

Without you burning a hole in his pocket, Levi walked away feeling lightyears lighter. He had already spent too much time thinking about you anyway, and he was relieved to give the picture away. Besides, he had other shit to do than worry about you. 

It wasn’t like Armin would find Reiner by today. 

Whoever that poor bastard was, he was probably on the run. 

Probably gone before anyone could find him. 

If anything, Levi wished him the best of luck in getting away. 

*** 

* * *

_With clammy hands, Reiner clutched his gun to his chest_

_He had been sitting on the edge of his motel tub, running back and forth between all of his options over the last night. Porco._

_That poor fucking idiot._

_Prior to his decision to meet up with MI6, Reiner could remember telling him it would be a mistake. When he had been caught by them as a teenager, Zeke punished him so badly it set the precedent for everyone else to never defect again, even mistakenly. But despite that, Porco was determined to leave. Even at the cost of his life._

_Blinking through blurry eyes, Reiner thought of Porco’s last words to him._

_**“There is no such thing as freedom as long as the Warriors exist. Don’t you get it? We’ll never be free.”** _

_He hit himself in the head in frustration. Sure, he had his options, but he liked none of them. He could work with MI6, like Porco tried to. But his life would be in danger. However, sitting here in this motel was dangerous. Going on the run would be dangerous. Wherever he went, and whatever he did, he was certain that the Warriors would find him._

_Zeke was relentless._

_And he would no doubt send the best of the best after him._

_There was no way in hell Zeke would let the Warriors fall apart, and he didn’t care who he had to dispose of to make sure of that._

_Porco’s words rang in his head again._

_There really was no such thing as freedom with the Warriors around. The lie that was sold to them at a young age was that working for them meant freedom. It meant you could do whatever you liked so long as you helped the cause. The silent caveat, however, was that you could never leave. Not willingly, anyway._

_Yes, Reiner had his options._

_But he liked none of them._

_All of his options put his fate into someone else’s hands._

_Working with MI6 meant trusting MI6 to look after his life, and he already saw how well that worked out for Porco._

_Going on the run meant putting his fate into the Warrior’s hands, and he knew that was a sure death sentence._

_Death was going to meet him around every corner, it seemed._

_But he was tired of running. Tired of worrying. Tired of waiting around the corner for what or who would await him._

_Reiner wanted to put his fate into his own hands._

_His own hands. And no one else’s._

* * *

***

“How do you expect me to find this kid again? He’s probably already on the run if he’s smart,” you muffled with a mouthful of food. 

“I have the location for you because I’ve been working on it all night. And don’t talk with your mouth full,” Zeke chastised while he sifted through his food. 

You rolled your eyes and scooted closer to him on the couch so you could chew directly in his ear. With a slow turn of his head, he tried to glare at you, which made you chew louder. You grinned when Zeke clenched his jaw. 

“What’d you hear on the bug?” you asked cheerfully, dipping a crab rangoon into some duck sauce. 

“What I thought I heard. Porco gave MI6 a picture of you along with your name,” Zeke replied, his expression empty. “How did he have a picture of you anyway? 

You leaned your head to one side to try to read his face, but found nothing. There was something he wasn’t telling you, and you weren’t sure you liked it. You placed your food down tentatively and wiped your fingers off on a nearby napkin, squinting at Zeke while you did. 

“Maria Church assignment,” you shrugged. “We were tailing her and her security guards started to follow us, so I pulled him into a photobooth. Had to pretend to be a real couple for a moment. I guess the creepy little bastard saved them.” 

Zeke hummed in acknowledgement. Again, there was something about his tone and posture you couldn’t place. You didn’t feel completely sober, but you were no longer hung over like you were this morning. You were able to read his body language just fine, and something was off. 

You bit your bottom lip as you tried to remember the few times Zeke behaved this way around you, then pulled your phone out to look at the date. 

“How are you feeling now?” Zeke asked. 

“I’m alive,” you stated, still looking at your phone. 

As you looked at the date, you realized it had been almost a decade. You weren’t even sure if you should bring it up. After all, you rarely did before even though you remembered it. But Zeke was so...different today. More caring than usual yet cold at the same time. It creeped you out. You had to ask. 

“And how are you...doing today? You know...with everything?” you asked tentatively, hoping he would understand the intent of your question. 

Taken aback by your question, Zeke could feel his breath hitching in his throat. While he knew you remembered, you didn’t ever press. In truth, he thought you didn’t care to ask. It was off-putting to hear this from you, especially today. He tented his fingers in a prayer position, then closed his eyes. 

“I’m fine.” 

A hollow silence fell before the two of you. But you didn’t want to break it. You just wanted to move away. 

Sitting up now, you began to clean up the empty containers of take out, along with all the champagne bottles on the floor. Zeke stayed silent while you cleaned, eyes drifting as he studied the inside of your apartment. He always used to joke that you lived like a French courtesan, and you had the baroque designs and love for opulence to go with it. His eyes lingered on one of your vases, then drifted over to your laptop where he could see a picture of a young man enlarged onto the screen. When he squinted to read the text, he could make out Levi’s name. 

“Did some research I see,” he pointed to your laptop. 

You looked back at him and threw a bottle into your recycling bin. 

“Yep.”

“Find anything interesting?”

You paused, then picked up a champagne bottle by the foot of the couch. 

“No.” 

Zeke watched as you continued to pick up empty bottles of champagne, then let his gaze drift back to your open laptop. He studied Levi’s face a bit more and the comparison wasn’t hard to make. He looked back at the champagne bottles. 

So _that_ was the reason for the drinking. He sighed. 

“Here,” Zeke said, getting up from the couch. 

He pulled out a slip of paper from the inside of his jacket. 

“Get dressed and go find him. Again, make it look like -” 

“Mhm, I remember,” you said, waving him off with one hand. 

An air of strange silence fell between the two of you again, and Zeke stared at you for a while too long before finally handing you the paper, making you narrow your eyes at him. 

Why was he being so strange? Even years before when this day would pass, he wasn’t this fucking weird. 

You didn’t like it. 

Without a goodbye or any other words for you, Zeke began to leave for the front door but you stopped him and called out. 

“Hey. Zekey.”

“What, Kilian?” he asked, exasperated, turning around to face you once more. 

“Did you remember to tip?” 

He rolled his eyes.

“You’re not serious, are you?”

“I am.”

A beat of silence.

“I didn’t.”

“Jesus. Really? You can be such a dick sometimes,” you crossed your arms over your chest and tutted at him, your tone playful. 

With another long glance at you, Zeke merely stared then shook his head. 

“Just...go find Reiner, Kilian.” 

The door shut with a slam, and you felt the air leaving the room in a way that made you pause. There was _definitely_ something Zeke wasn’t telling you, but you could wrangle it out of him another time. 

For now, you had to get dressed. 

As you shuffled back to your bedroom, you figured a simple all black look would do. You pushed through your various designer dresses, clicking your tongue while you tried to find the best one until you came across an old Prada skirt. 

That was the one. 

You decided to pair it with a black turtleneck, some sheer black stockings, and combat boots. 

Just in case Reiner made you work for it. 

While you sprayed on your perfume, you thought to grab your special La Perla brassiere. It was only special because you had done something to it, not because of the brand itself. Out of sheer boredom, you sewed a few razor blades to the back of it. It was easy to rip off and grab, and your enemy would never expect it. When you came up with the idea, you thought it was brilliant.

You still did. 

And while you weren’t expecting a messy fight, it didn’t hurt to be prepared. 

Just in case.

* * *

Although Levi could feel his phone vibrating in his pocket, he ignored it for a while to observe the conversation before him. 

Once again, he was at the hospital visiting Kenny, who was in good spirits. For once, the old bastard wasn’t asleep or struggling to breathe (as much). Today he actually seemed brighter and more alert. Right now he was being entertained by Petra who was chattering to him about some shit. Truthfully, Levi couldn’t tell what she was talking about. He had selectively tuned out most of her words, but he heard bits and pieces. 

Honestly, he was just happy that what he was listening to had nothing to do with work. 

And when Kenny kept grinning those toothless smiles at him, Levi relaxed in his seat. 

At least someone in his family wanted him around them. 

“I’m telling you, Kenny. It’s totally plausible. Don’t you think so, Levi?” Petra smiled at him while she cleaned some crumbs of food off Kenny’s face. 

Levi looked up. 

“Think what?” 

“That her death was orchestrated!” 

Levi glanced over at Kenny for some help, but all he got in return was a smug smirk. 

_Real helpful, you old fuck,_ Levi thought. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“Oh, sorry. We’re talking about Lady Dina Fritz! It’s been almost ten years since her untimely death. I’m kind of really into stuff like this. I always thought her death was...weird. Kind of like she was murdered,” Petra whispered in excitement. “But I don’t know why I’m even asking you about it! I guess you can’t say anything considering who you work for anyway, right?” 

Not wanting to stomp on Petra’s weird sense of joy and enthusiasm over the subject, Levi merely looked back at Kenny then back to Petra. 

“Yeah. Exactly,” he said, feeling the incessant buzzing in his pocket now more than ever. “I have to take this, excuse me.” 

He held up his finger to Petra, then nodded to Kenny before exiting the room. 

Holding the phone close to his ear now, Levi answered it with a harsh, “What is it?” 

“Sir, it’s me. Armin Arlert...I found Reiner Braun’s location.” 

Shit. 

He snapped his gaze back to Kenny’s room once more, focusing on the way Kenny engaged with his nurse even if it was all nonverbal. For a moment, the old man seemed closer to his younger self than ever before. It was the most animated he had seen him since he was first admitted into the hospital. 

Levi pinched his lips together and shut his eyes.

“Send it to me now.”

“Of course, sir. I’ve marked his location for you and set a route.” 

“Good. And Arlert?”

“Yes, sir?”

“Thanks.” 

With a heavy sigh, Levi hung up the phone and looked back into Kenny’s room once more. He shoved his hands in his pocket and stood in the door frame in silence. 

“Leaving already?” Petra asked with a knowing, sad smile. 

“Yeah. Work calls,” Levi replied. 

His eyes drifted towards Kenny. He had a painful expression on his face that Levi couldn’t place. It was both a mixture of two emotions Levi didn’t want to think about. Uncomfortable by the break in Kenny’s facade, Levi shook his head and put up two fingers to wave goodbye. 

“See you tomorrow, old man. And good night, Petra.” 

After he gave his half-hearted goodbye, Levi made his way to the parking garage with haste. He hung his phone onto the dashboard and looked at the location Armin had marked down for him. 

He clenched his jaw the entire time he drove. 

Not because of the assignment itself. 

But because once again, Levi’s instincts kicked in and he felt like something was off about this entire ordeal. 

But he couldn’t think any more about it. 

All he could hope for was that no one else had gotten to Reiner before he could.

 _Especially_ not you.

* * *

You parked your car far away from the motel and approached what should have been Reiner’s room from the back. You were more than ready to face him. With a silenced gun attached to the holster on your thigh, a switchblade on the other, and razor blades across your back — you were perhaps overly prepared. 

Truthfully, you just wanted to make this quick and easy. 

Looking around to see if you could register any movements in the other rooms before you entered, you noticed something odd. It was as if the entire place was dead. You couldn’t hear anyone’s TV running. Nor could you hear the sounds of people talking. No showers going. No toilets flushing. Nothing. 

It was odd, and you were really going to hand it to Zeke when you saw him again. 

He clearly told you less than you needed to know, and that annoyed the shit out of you.

Still, you had a job to do. 

Shaking off the feeling, you began to pick the lock to the window. When the lock clicked, you climbed inside with ease. After jumping down safely into the bedroom, you smoothed your clothes down. But before you could look around for Reiner — before you could even take out your pistol — you saw the pool of blood coming out from underneath the bathroom door. 

_Fuck._

Groaning and turning your head away, you realized what had happened. It didn’t take a genius to figure it out even though you didn’t bother to open the door. You frowned as you dialed Zeke, shaking your leg all while you heard the dial tone. 

Finally, he picked up. 

“Did you do it?” you heard him ask once he answered the phone. 

“No. He -” you sighed, and pinched the bridge of your nose. “He did it himself.” 

“Oh. I see,” Zeke replied simply. “Well. I suppose that makes your life easier.”

You didn’t reply. Instead, you just continued to shake your leg, watching as the blood pooled out of the bathroom floor. 

It was sure to stain the carpet. 

“Well, stay there. I’ll meet you.” 

Confused at Zeke’s statement, you meant to protest but were unable to as he hung up on you. You had half a mind to call him back. You wanted to ask him why you had to stay and why he wanted to meet you, and why you couldn’t just return home. It was all so fucking odd. Your finger was about to dial Zeke’s number once more, but just as you held the phone up to your ear again, you heard faint, slow footsteps coming towards the front door. 

Without hesitation, you pulled out your gun and readied the trigger.

* * *

The route Armin had sent Levi on had him taking the small, twisted back roads. Apparently it was quicker this way. When Levi finally got to the motel, it made him go towards the back of the motel instead of the front. While he wanted to curse Armin out for the inconvenience, Levi merely rolled his eyes and blamed it on the GPS instead. 

Nothing was ever perfect. 

Whatever.

He started to turn the wheel to round the corner so he could make it to the front, and that was when he saw it. 

Clear as day, there was an open fucking window to the back of one of the motel rooms.

He narrowed his eyes at the sight, and clicked his tongue. 

If his instincts were right, this was it. 

Putting the car in park now, Levi quickly got out and quietly made his way to the open window. He didn’t even have to walk more than two steps closer or even look through the goddamn window. 

Because as soon as he got out of the car, the faint smell of marshmallow and orange whisked past his nose. 

He would never forget the scent for as long as he lived. 

With quickness, Levi hopped back into his car and pulled up to the front of the motel instead, brakes squealing as he shut the vehicle off and put it in park. 

Sure, he could’ve gone through the window. But Levi wasn’t going to sneak up on you from the back. That’s what cowards did, and he was no coward. 

He readied his gun and realized that the closer he got to the door, that sneaking up on you was far from what he wanted. 

No. 

What Levi wanted was to see you face-to-face.

One.

Last.

Time. 


	5. I Could Tell You, But I'd Have To Kill You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _lose yourself at my expense_  
> 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **TW: blood, violence, gore - the usual**

The door creaked open slow and steady. With your gun readied and cocked, you raised it up as you braced yourself to see who was on the other side. You half expected it to be Zeke, but you knew the sounds of his footsteps better than that. Who you were greeted with instead was entirely unexpected, but not at all unwelcome. 

“Oh, it’s just yo-”

Levi slammed to the ground in an instant. He wasted no time pinning you down to try to wrestle your gun out of your hand, but your instincts kicked in and you began to fight him off. Flurries of punches coming from both of you shot in every direction with no landing. When you tried to roll him over to be on top, he flipped you onto your back in an instant. And when you tried to kick him off, Levi kept his legs locked onto your waist to prevent you from moving.

Neither of you exchanged a single word. 

All you remembered was the fury and rage blazing in his eyes.

All he remembered was how amused you seemed to be by the whole thing. 

After a few minutes of you no longer putting up a fight, Levi managed to rip the gun from your hands - expertly unloading the clip and tossing it aside while he kept your arms pinned down with his other hand. He tried to avoid looking down at you, wondering why you had any reason to wear such a smug, shit-eating grin on your face at the moment. 

You began to open your mouth, but Levi stopped you.

“Don’t talk.” 

You giggled, quelling the temptation to buck your hips up at him to throw him off his game in more ways than one.

“Did you really think that’s _all_ I came here with?” 

Levi scoffed.

“No. I’m not fucking stupid,” he grit through his teeth, gripping your wrists a little harder while he spoke. 

“Oh, I know that,” you sang teasingly. 

He gripped your wrists even harder, and when a little laugh tumbled out from your chest, Levi couldn’t suppress the urge to move his hands from your wrists down to your neck. Catching the way his eyes traveled to your throat, you playfully quirked a brow up and grinned. 

“Think about that often?” you asked, reading his mind.

“Shut it.” 

The hollow laugh that left you was enough to make Levi see red. 

You were so arrogant. 

So frustrating. It shouldn’t have been that easy to pin you down. You didn’t seem like someone who would succumb to defeat. You seemed relentless when in pursuit of your goals, and Levi wouldn’t have been surprised if it extended to the way in which you fought. You could’ve kicked him off with ease - your legs being much longer than his - but you didn’t. You could’ve rolled him over again, but you didn’t even try. You could’ve headbutted him, which he expected you to do at one point but you never did. Levi even remembered how you kept pulling your punches all while dodging his with expertise. 

You were unpredictable in every way. 

You could’ve fought harder, but you didn’t. 

You could’ve even killed him if he made one wrong move, but you didn’t.

_Why?_

Once again, you caught the expression on his face and read his mind. Even with his hands around your wrists and his legs caged around your waist, you remained calm and still underneath Levi. 

“Trust me. I know how you feel,” you said softly with a tone too sweet for your voice. “It’s always so...disappointing, isn’t it?” 

“What?” 

Another laugh. 

“The catch,” you grinned. “Never as much fun as the chase. I’m guessing this didn’t go the way you thought it was going to the next time you saw me..”

“I don’t think about you,” Levi sneered.

“No? I think about **you** all the time,” you nodded, thrusting your hips up slightly. 

With a growl, Levi pushed his weight back down onto your hips and leaned in closer to your face, ignoring the scent of your perfume. 

“I’m going to let you go, and you’re going to drop every fucking weapon you have on you. Try anything and I’ll kill you.” 

“Ooooh,” you giggled, rolling your wrists once Levi let go of you with reluctance. 

Tired of your childish antics, he didn’t have the energy to tell you to be quiet anymore. You were amused by everything, it seemed. He couldn’t figure out what game you were playing at. There was a reason you fought him with almost no resistance. 

He just had to figure out what that was before it was too late. 

Standing by the door now, he shut it with the heel of his foot while he watched your every movement like a hawk. 

The first thing you did when you stood up was adjust your skirt then dust it off. Bunched up from the scuffle, you were hardly ashamed that Levi could now see the garters on your thighs. His eyes narrowed at the switchblade attached to your left leg. Noticing this, you lifted your skirt up even higher, giving him a peek of your underwear. You grinned, then dragged your fingers along the soft material while he watched. With slow, tantalizing movements, you pulled the blade out from its small holster and dropped it onto the ground, kicking it over to him. 

“Happy?” you asked, letting your skirt down. 

Levi ignored you and picked the blade up.

“I’ll be taking that back before this is all over, by the way.” 

“No, you won’t,” Levi slipped the switchblade into his pocket. “Any other weapons you have on you, drop them now.” 

“You are so bossy. Does that come from your military days?” you placed your hands on your hips and huffed.

He scoffed at this. Was he supposed to be surprised that you knew that information? That you seemed to know anything about him at all? 

Levi couldn’t have cared less to know what you gathered on him. 

“Congratulations. You have access to the internet like everyone else,” he said flatly. “Remove whatever else you have now. I won’t ask again.”

“You weren’t asking to begin with, you were _telling_. Bossy, bossy, bossy,” you tutted, lifting up the hem of your shirt. “Luckily for you, I like that.” 

As you began to remove your shirt completely, Levi pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration and sighed. 

“What the _hell_ do you think you’re doing?” 

“You said all weapons,” you replied with innocence. 

“I don’t have time for your stupid games, and your _tits_ aren’t weapons,” he growled.

“Says you,” you frowned, thinking back to Rod Reiss. 

“Put your fucking shirt back on or -” 

You threw your shirt onto the nearby table.

“Reeelax, Levi.” 

This was the first time in the night you had said his name. It rolled off your tongue like honey, and from the way the muscles on his neck flexed, you could tell it had an impact on him. Whether it was good or bad was what you couldn’t figure out. Either way, you rolled your eyes in amusement and tittered before turning around. 

Levi studied your every movement, careful to act in case you bolted for the door in the midst of this distraction. But your run for escape never came. What did come was you pointing to the back of your bra. He squinted to see what you were pointing at, and nearly bit his tongue off in annoyance.

You had managed to sew two razor blades onto either side of the clasps. 

He let out a breath of disbelief. 

“Brilliant, right?” you asked, turning around with a smile.

“No,” Levi deadpanned. 

“Remember how I said I’ll be getting my switchblade back?” you ignored him. “I need you to hand that to me so I can cut the threads off.” 

Levi stood his ground and scoffed.

“No. Rip them off.”

“No way, this is _very_ expensive.” 

“I don’t care.”

“You should,” you folded your arms across your chest like a child, and stamped your foot down on the ground. 

“Rip them off right now, or I will make you. I don’t have time for this shit,” Levi snapped.

“If I rip it off, the whole bra will fall apart. This is imported silk, you neanderthal.”

“I don’t care.” 

“Fine. The first thing I’m doing once I ‘rip’ these off is slicing them across your neck,” you snarled. 

“I’d like to see you try.”

“You won’t have to.” 

“Try anything and I’ll kill you.”

“Not if I do it first,” you retaliated. 

You made one step forward and Levi readied himself for any more sudden movements.

“Have you ever cut anyone with just a razor blade?” you asked lowly. “Hurts like hell.”

The playful expression you previously wore on your face turned into a more sinister one upon your last sentence, and Levi paused. He wasn’t going to waste any more time giving into your goading. He needed to tell Erwin he had apprehended you, and he needed to keep you in this room long enough until a team arrived. That was all he had to do.

And the only way he knew he could do that safely was by having you remove all your weapons. 

Letting you have even a **single** weapon on your person was like playing Russian Roulette.

And he was in no mood for games.

“I’ll do it,” Levi sneered, whipping your switchblade out from his pocket without hesitation. 

Surprised by his answer, you lifted a brow up at him as he closed the space between the two of you and remained facing front. 

“If you wanted to touch me, all you had to do was ask,” you whispered.

“Don’t flatter yourself. I don’t fucking trust you. Turn. Around,” Levi growled. 

You chewed on your lower lip to hold in a laugh, and shrugged before turning around. Levi kept his gaze focused on your hands and wrists as he anticipated for you to fight him off once again, but you never did. Once again, you did the unpredictable and made a move he couldn’t predict, remaining still for him. The docility you were showing him was off-putting. And as he moved to cut the threads off the razor blades you’d sewn onto the back of your bra, he realized you were doing this on purpose. 

You _wanted_ him to be the one to do this, and Levi walked into the trap without a second thought. 

Upon this realization, he tugged at the other razor blade with a harsher pull and worked to remove that one quicker than he did the first, his fingers grazing across your skin with the rough movements. 

Your breath hitched in your throat at this, but Levi chose to ignore it. Instead, he counted the number of scars littered across your back and finished what he had to do. 

“Have a lot of experience with this?” you joked, breaking the quiet. 

“Be quiet,” Levi scolded, placing the last razor blade into his free hand. 

When you could feel he was finished, you turned around. 

“These -” Levi held the razorblades up with two fingers and held them towards your face, “Stay with me.”

You purposely stared down at his waist, then remembered the pocket he’d placed them in along with the location of all the other weapons he now had on him. You stared for a second too long then glanced back to Levi’s face. 

“Something to remember me by, huh?” 

Levi breathed out through his nostrils. 

The silence and tension between the two of you was palpable and thick, like heavy smog at the peak of a mountain. Every breath you took challenged you even though the air smelt cleaner than ever before. You admittedly never thought your next encounter with him would be like this. Filled with so much...ease. 

If Levi were smart, he would’ve restrained your hands once you turned around, but he didn’t. He wasn’t even trying to fight you anymore. Instead, he kept his eyes trained onto your face, never breaking his gaze or changing his facial expression. 

Had it been any other man in the world, you were certain that his eyes would’ve looked down to stare at your breasts. 

But this wasn’t any other man in the world.

This was Levi. 

You had no idea what Levi was really like. But the intense way in which he focused on your face let you know more than you needed to. 

He was good at controlling himself.

But you weren’t. 

Without a second thought, you reached out towards Levi’s face, making him react quickly. Once again, you were met with his hand gripping your wrist, this time with more brutal force than before. 

“What. The. Fuck. Do you think you’re doing?”

Levi’s voice was low as the invisible threats he had for you hung over your head once more. While you were sure anyone else in the world would’ve shrunk under his looming persona, you weren’t anyone else. 

So you smiled and looked at him. 

Seeing this, Levi rolled his eyes to the back of his head and waited for you to make a joke about his height. But you never said a word. All Levi could feel was your long, manicured finger poking at his temple, gently sweeping away at the hair that was there. 

You tilted your head to the side and wrinkled your nose. 

“What?” Levi bit out, his voice like venom. 

“Your hair is so soft - what do you use?” 

“For fuck’s sake,” he muttered, letting your hand go. 

You snorted in amusement. 

“Put your goddamn shirt back on and sit down,” Levi finished, stepping away from you to retake his place by the door. 

Grabbing your shirt from off the table, you slipped it back on in a flash, then looked at the time. You couldn’t hold off playing around with him anymore. If Zeke got here while Levi was still around, you knew he’d order you to kill him. Frowning at this, you tucked the rest of your shirt back into your skirt and turned around.

“Well this _has_ been fun. But I gotta go.”

“You’re not going anywhere. Sit. Down,” Levi ordered, pointing at one of the chairs tucked under the table. 

The authoritative hold he tried to hold over you was amusing. You wondered how long he could try to keep it up, and wiggled your brows at him. 

You could entertain this for just a little while longer.

Pulling out the chair now, you sat down onto it with a plop. With his back to the door, Levi continued to stare at you all while trying to text on his phone. 

“Who are you calling?” 

“No one. Mind your business and **stay** seated,” he scowled. 

You rocked in your seat, rolling back and forth on the heels of your boots. 

“Stop doing that.” 

You rolled forward. 

“You know,” you leaned forward and rested your forearms onto the table. “I never did get a chance to learn how to paint. Been a bit busy.” 

Looking back towards the bathroom, you realized the pool of blood was now fully seeping out onto the carpets of the main bedroom. 

“I didn’t do that, though,” you pointed to the floor with a grimace. 

Levi stared at the blood on the carpet for a moment too long. 

That was sure to stain. 

He shook himself out of his thoughts and went back to texting Erwin his location along with more details.

“You can confess to everything when you get back,” Levi finished, eyes on his phone now.

“Oh, back? Where are we going? Mine or yours?” you flirted, tapping the table with your nails. 

No answer. 

“You’re really not going to let me leave?”

“No,” Levi kept his gaze on his phone. 

“You know I could leave right now and you wouldn’t be able to do anything about it?” 

“Move, and I’ll cut you,” Levi whipped out your switchblade without hesitation. 

“And what would you do if I got away?”

“Find you,” he answered in a bored tone. 

With that, Levi placed the switchblade back into his pocket with the razors and rolled his eyes at the pout growing on your face. Still surprised by how obedient you were being, Levi put his phone away in his back pocket. Slowly, he began to pick up the discarded pieces of your gun from the floor, then laid them onto a nearby bed with caution.

“You don’t give up easily, do you?” you said with a smile. “Ever thought about switching sides?” 

“Quiet,” he barked. 

You sighed and rested your cheek onto the table. 

You were bored, and Zeke was bound to come by soon. That, and even you never imagined your next exchange with Levi to be so...uneventful. 

“It’s so quiet,” you groaned, throwing your head into your hands. 

Levi snapped his head up and stared at you upon your sudden outburst. He waited for you to jump up at any moment, but you kept your cheek pressed up against the table like a petulant child.

But you were right. 

All Levi could hear were the sounds of the two of you breathing, water dripping from a faucet, the sound of white noise buzzing behind him, but nothing else. No other patrons in other rooms. No whispering, hushed voices. No sounds of the television running the background. 

It _was_ quiet. 

He noticed it upon arriving. 

Being stuck with only you in a single room only amplified the silence. 

Levi shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest, looking toward the beds. 

“Did you know?” you piped up. 

Levi’s eyes glazed over when he looked your way again. 

“Know _what_?” 

“When you met me on the train. I mean, not what I did. But you had your suspicions about me, no?” you hummed. 

He pinched his lips together and closed his eyes.

“Do you ever listen to **shit** that pours out of your mouth?” 

You shrugged and leaned back in your chair so you could throw your legs over the table. 

“No.”

Levi tsked in disapproval at your answer. 

“You should really let me go,” you sang. “I won’t be of any help to you anyway.” 

“I don’t care. You’ll still be behind bars. And **get** your feet off the table.” 

“Eh. I don’t like to be in a cage. Never have. I’d find a way out somehow,” you chuckled, swinging your legs back underneath the chair. 

“I’d like to see you try,” Levi hissed.

“Are you doubting me?” 

“I’ll find you again. People like you belong in a cage, and a goddamn cage is where you’ll stay.” 

That one amused you. 

You weren’t confused by what you’d done by any means. Yes, you had killed people. What you were puzzled by was why you deserved to be caged away for it. 

Did he even bother to look into the people you killed or did he only care to look into _you?_

Suddenly, you stood up and Levi placed his hand over his gun holster. 

“Is that all you want? To put me away?” 

“Yes. Sit **down** ,” Levi demanded, his voice firm but even. 

“And if I don’t?” you laughed. 

“I’ll fucking make you. Now sit down,” he warned. 

“What would you even do once you put me away?” you stayed standing. 

“My goddamn job - stop asking so many questions,” Levi’s jaw tensed as he answered you. 

“Really? I feel like you’d be bored. I’m probably the most entertaining thing you have going on right now,” you teased.

“Your brain must really roll around in that empty thing you call a head. You don’t matter to me,” he answered in short, clipped tones.

You placed a hand over your heart and feigned a sad expression.

“Ouch.”

“Shut up.”

Although you kept quiet, you kept approaching Levi with slow and steady steps, keeping a grin on your face. 

“Don’t take another _fucking_ step,” he commanded, unwilling to let you rile him up but keeping an eye on your every move. 

The heels of your boots hit the floor once more.

“Like I said,” you murmured, once again closing the space between you and Levi. “This has been fun.”

“Si-”

“No. I’m going to leave, and you’re going to let me. I don’t wanna play anymore,” your nose was now inches away from Levi’s face.

You let out a heavy sigh, and Levi ignored the smell of your perfume while you memorized the birthmark located on the seam of his jaw. 

“You know why?” you breathed out. “Because. You. Bore. Me,” you taunted. 

_SLAM!_

You were spun around and thrown against the frame of the door without hesitation as Levi wrapped his hand around your throat. He could feel your pulse strumming under his thumb while you tried to wrangle his hands away from you with no real effort. 

When you grinned, Levi squeezed harder. 

“Having fun?” you let out in a hoarse whisper. 

“Shut. Up,” his grip got tighter.

You closed your eyes at the sensation as you began to see stars, then looked back down at him. 

“You wanna know something?” 

“No, shu-”

“You remind me of someone I loved.” 

Levi didn’t loosen his hold on your throat but narrowed his eyes at you. 

“Let me guess. You killed them.” 

It was the first time in the night that you didn’t rush to answer Levi. 

You paused, then spoke.

“Yes,” you sneered.

Caught off guard by your confession, Levi loosened his grip for just a moment, and that was all you needed. You didn’t hesitate to punch him in the face, making him let go of you completely and stumble backwards. Quick as ever, Levi reached for his gun and cocked it, aiming it towards your face while you dove for it. 

“Fucking move and I’ll -” 

The door flung open, cutting Levi off. Both of you snapped your heads in its direction, and your jaw dropped when you saw who it was. It was the last person you had ever expected to see aiming a gun your way. 

_What was she doing here?_ you thought. 

Realizing that there were more people than she expected, you watched as your fellow Warrior Pieck move the gun from where you were towards Levi instead. 

You didn’t hesitate.

With a hard shove, you pushed Levi to the floor, ignoring the sudden sharp pain you felt across your wrist while you did. 

Two gunshots fired. 

Pieck missed. 

And you didn’t. 

When she fell to the floor with a thud, you glared at the bullet wound on her forehead. Blood pooled across the floor from where she lay, and as you looked down at your feet, you saw drips of blood coming down from where you stood. You felt the warm liquid as it pooled down your wrist and snaked across your fingers, burying itself into the crevices of your skin. 

Slowly, you raised your right hand up to your face, and looked down. 

A deep cut ran river red straight across your wrist. 

In the midst of stealing Levi’s gun, he had managed to cut you. 

Assessing the situation, what you had done, and your now slower reactions, Levi got up with caution. 

“Kilian,” he warned slowly. 

You gripped your gun once more and cocked it, aiming it at him. 

_BANG!_

Levi clutched his left shoulder in pain as the bullet pierced through bone. Injured and in seething pain, he found himself unable to say a word. He approached you slowly, but you shook your head no.

Actually pausing at this, Levi locked his eyes onto yours and waited for you to speak.

But you never did.

Instead, you gave him a devilish grin, and it wasn’t long before you disappeared out the window; quick like a fox. 


	6. Dark Paradise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _every time i close my eyes, it's like a dark paradise_  
>  _no one compares to you_  
>  _i'm scared that you won't be waiting on the other side_  
> 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **TW: blood, slight gore, and implied self-harm**

_“Can I ask you a question, Kilian?”_

_“You mean like you’ve been doing for the past few hours, Eren?” you looked back and teased._

_As soon as the joke tumbled out of you, Eren looked away from you with a quickness which didn’t surprise you. In your short time together, you caught a lot of these moments with him. Moments where his frail, sensitive nature would peek through even at the most innocuous comments. Eren had a bubble, and it was easy to poke if you weren’t careful._

_If a glass cannon ever met Eren, they’d have a lot in common._

_Facing him now, you tilted your head to the side to try to catch his face better. He turned away even more, and all you could see were his pink ears. You sighed and moved away from the window, walking over to where he sat._

_“Go ahead, ask,” you said as you took a seat next to him on the floor._

_“No, it’s nothing,” Eren mumbled, scratching his cheek. He kept his gaze away from you and down to the floor._

_“Well now I want to know. Ask me or I’ll keep bothering you until you do.”_

_“No, like I said it’s nothing. It’s stupid, forget it.”_

_You rolled your eyes and scooted closer so you could poke at his cheeks. “Ask meeeee.”_

_“Stop,” Eren whined, blowing his cheeks out to avoid being bugged by you._

_“I will when you ask me your ‘stupid’ question.”_

_“I said -”_

_“I heard what you said and that was stupid, too. So ask me the question,” you cut him off, making him look at you._

_Like an embarrassed kid standing in front of the class for a presentation, he looked towards you tentatively, chewing down on his lip. Amusing, you thought. It was a new experience, being around Eren. He reminded you of the quintessential kid brother that you’d never known nor had. He annoyed you. He was self-effacing. Too curious for his own good. Always up your ass. Sweet._

_You folded your arms across your chest and gave him a real smile, then cocked a brow up at him._

_“Seriously, Eren. Just ask me,” you said gentler this time._

_Finally, he gave you a slight smile and relaxed in his posture. He absentmindedly scratched his ear as if he were mulling over how to ask you what was on his mind before finally speaking._

_“Does...anyone ever...get out?”_

_“Get...out?”_

_“Yeah,” Eren breathed out as if he’d been holding the question in all day. “You know...leave?”_

_“Leave the Warriors, you mean?”_

_He nodded, and you studied his face with intent for a second as you digested the question. You paused._

_“You wanna leave me so soon, Eren?” you joked with a pout._

_Eren threw his hands up at you in protest._

_“No! I - it was just a -”_

_“Relax, I’m messing with you,” you nudged him with your elbow and held in your laugh over his flushed cheeks. “It’s okay.”_

_You let out a deep sigh and looked back to the window to try to observe the surroundings. Suddenly, you found yourself more interested in the way the foliage draped over the buildings than you did looking at Eren. With one finger, you tapped the hardwood floor beneath you three times then glanced back his way._

_“One person did...” you trailed off slowly._

_Your voice was gentle and soft as if you were lost in another world. Eren could see the wheels turning behind your eyes. The sharp, intense way in which you drifted away from the world every time he asked a question too close to home. He kept catching these moments with you. Albeit fleeting and always too short, Eren found moments with you where you were far from what he expected. He expected a sociopath. Someone incapable of remorse, guilt, caring, love...basic human emotions. Eren expected to meet someone who didn’t experience any of that._

_What he got instead was...you._

_You: who seemed to feel everything and nothing all at once._

_“I don’t know how she did it,” you said finally, your voice hardened._

_With your final statement, you got up to standing so you could face the window and Eren followed suit to stand behind you. He watched as you folded your arms across your chest. Watched the way you studied the outside world._

_You didn’t say another word._

_Just like he inadvertently prodded into your life when he asked if you knew Zeke, Eren knew that he had once again toed another line. And while he didn’t know you well, he knew you were omitting something._

_“Can I at least know her name?” Eren asked quietly, standing closer beside you._

_You scoffed lightly._

_If it were anyone else, you would have been annoyed. You would have told them off. Maybe you would have shot them the way you did Floch. But Eren didn’t bother you. He couldn’t. No matter how hard he tried. He felt like a child to you. It was sudden, but the sound of his voice echoed in your head once more as you thought back to him telling you how old he was. He wasn’t even in his twenties._

_“Her name was Annie,” you said, finding some gentle patience with him once more._

When Eren finished recalling his conversation with you, his eyes glazed over towards Zeke. This had to be cigarette number two or three by now.

Zeke showed up at his apartment out of nowhere. Since Eren had finished that job with you, he hadn’t been assigned anything else. Zeke didn’t bother to text him or call him much unless it had to do with ‘business’. But now here he was. Smoking on Eren’s balcony, barely saying a word to him. Showing up just to show up.

“How’s Kilian?” Eren piped up, trying to break the silence.

He’d been wondering about you for the better half of the week since he’d first met you. He couldn’t stop thinking about you.. Whether you meant to or not, you had done him a favor. Eren never wanted to be in the Warriors, let alone kill another person. He didn’t want to sever the relationship with the only remaining family member he had left either by ‘failing’ to do his job. And whether you intended to help yourself or help him, you still did something for him. And he wanted nothing more than to know why.

Zeke looked over at Eren with a bored expression on his face and flicked the end of his cigarette off the balcony railing.

“Why do you care?” he asked, his voice indifferent. “I don’t keep tabs on her.”

Eren rubbed his forearm up and down with one hand and stepped back. “It’s just a question, Zeke.”

A question that garnered a strange answer. Although Eren knew little about the Warriors, he knew Zeke had to have kept tabs on you — on everyone — him included. He knew that if anyone kept in contact with you the most, it was his brother.

He wanted to inquire more, but before he could, Zeke’s phone rang. As if he’d been waiting for the call all day, Zeke threw his cigarette down onto the floor in an instant, and crushed it under his heel.

“Hoover,” Zeke answered curtly. “What? For fuck’s sake - hold on.”

Zeke muted his call and shook his head, then turned back to Eren. His jaw tensed and clicked in place.

“I’m giving you an assignment in a few weeks. In the meantime, lay low.”

Eren began to open his mouth to say something but Zeke cut him off by holding one hand up.

“Don’t ask me any more questions, Eren. Enough. And don’t fucking ask me about Kilian anymore either. She’s fine...apparently,” Zeke rolled his eyes, and put the phone back to his ear.

The last word was laced with bitterness and mumbled under Zeke’s breath, but Eren heard it just fine. He wasn’t sure what Zeke was alluding to specifically, but he knew something wasn’t right. Something wasn’t right with Zeke, and something wasn’t right with you.

Eren had no idea where you were.

But he knew that wherever you were, you had to be far from fine.

* * *

You had never been in so much fucking pain in your entire life.

No amount of late night beatings, stab wounds, bullet wounds, or scars amounted to the level of pain you felt now because Levi had cut you _**deep.**_

Initially numb to it in the throes of adrenaline, you didn’t even feel the slash across your wrist. But he acted as quickly as you did, if not quicker. From the way it cut down deep into your tendons, arteries, and nerves, you knew that Levi had swiped you with your own sharp razor blades, and he had done it hard.

So now, here you were.

Bleeding out in the middle of a shitty, ugly dormitory at Liberio Medical University. With some cheap bed sheets wrapped over your war-torn wrist.

 _What a sight to see_ , you thought.

It wasn’t even challenging for you to get here.

In fact, as soon as you knew Levi wasn’t going to chase you down, you floored it to the college without hesitation. On your way there, you managed to make a makeshift tourniquet with old scarves you had tucked in your car. Hermès was never meant to bandage a wound (not a physical one anyway) but you were desperate. About ten minutes out, you dumped the car into a nearby ravine. Then, you began the hike to the college and scaled the dormitory building of the person you needed to see. You should’ve passed out from the loss of blood. Your vision spun all the way over and you could feel yourself getting light-headed with every passing minute.

But nothing on earth had killed you yet.

And you’d be damned if you survived everything you had in your life just to die over a mild scratch on your wrist.

You hissed as another jolt of pain struck up your entire arm. While you’d been injured before, it could not compare to the agony you were in now. The ground swayed beneath you any time you tried to move. Your heart pounded so hard in your ears, you thought your blood vessels would burst at any moment. You tried to let out a hollow laugh at your situation but it came out as a dry cough.

It would have been funny if you weren’t so close to passing out.

Suddenly, the door creaked open and you heard voices.

“Bye, Karina. We’ll see you tomorrow,” you heard someone say.

“Bye, see you tomorrow,” said the other voice as they approached the door.

You waited for them to enter.

“Karina, huh?” you laughed as soon as Annie entered the room. “I like it.”

Her phone dropped to the floor with a thud and she gasped. She clasped a hand over her mouth to hold in her yelps as she surveyed the scene before her. You were the last person she’d ever expected to see. And she definitely didn’t expect to see you like...this.

“What the fuck -”

You cut her off and stumbled as you rolled off her bed. “Don’t ask me anything.”

You unraveled the bedsheets and scarves wrapped around your wrist to show Annie your deep wound, and her eyes bugged out of her head. No other reaction. She stared too long for your liking.

“HELLO,” you shouted, your patience growing thin and your anxiety rising. “Help me before I bleed on something you actually like,” you laughed as you tripped on your own two feet.

“Alright, fine! Just lie down,” Annie said, scrambling to action finally.

For once, you listened without protest. Annie threw her bag off her shoulder and ran to the bed to sit next to you, barely able to register what she saw. The first thing she noticed was how cool your skin was to the touch. Your chest rose and fell rapidly like you were struggling to breathe. And when she checked your pulse, your heart hammered beneath her fingers. All of that coupled with your lack of patience, the weak way in which you stood up, and your blacked out pupils, Annie knew one thing for sure.

You were going into shock.

And she could not fix this in her tiny dorm room.

She hopped off the bed.

“I have to take you to the student clinic downstairs.”

“No way. Just you, no one else,” you countered.

“Either you come with me downstairs to the clinic or you can bleed out in my dorm. Take your pick,” Annie replied in a bored tone.

Once again, you listened with no further protests. Although weak, you got up and made your way to the door. But before you could open the door, Annie stopped you.

“Here,” she bent down to rummage through her bag and pulled out a roll of gauze. “Just until we get downstairs.”

You nodded sleepily and gave her your limp, bloody wrist, allowing her to bandage it up as quickly as possible.

“Just stay behind me. It’s late, no one should be out anyway. The clinic is just downstairs.”

Once again, you nodded and followed Annie out the door and down the steps with obedience, making sure to hide your state as much as you could. Seeing you like this made Annie uneasy. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up to see you in this state.

You were never this quiet. Never this docile. Never...this. Even if you had gotten injured in the middle of a mission before — Zeke had to have had doctors on stand-by for things like this.

The mere fact that you were **here** , and not wherever he was had to mean things weren’t good.

“Come on, I’m friends with the guy who runs this. Just say you’re my step-sister or something,” she said, ignoring her own train of thoughts.

You gave her a weak nod of acknowledgement and she frowned at you, studying your face for too long. Then, she faced forward and turned the handle on the door.

The clinic was barren when the two of you walked in. Almost completely empty, shy of a young man sitting by the small desk in the corner. From what you could see, he wasn’t very tall. He had dark blonde hair, a narrow face, and seemingly nice features. Prior to the two of you walking in, he had been humming to himself.

 _Cute_ , you thought.

“Hey, Karina,” he waved once he saw Annie. “Whoa. Shit. What happened here?”

He popped up off his seat and immediately ran over to you and held your wrist in his hands to look it over. While you normally didn’t like people touching you without your permission, you supposed you could let it slide this time. You almost fell over from the warmth of his hands.

You needed all the help you could get.

Annie stepped behind him and shook her head at how you were leaning over to one side. Things were getting bad for you, and she had no time to waste.

“Sorry, Farlan. This is my...step-sister -”

“Annie,” you uttered out with a smile towards her.

“... **Annie** ,” she repeated slowly, flipping you off from behind Farlan’s back. “She injured herself badly. She’s going into hypovolemic shock, can you please help her while I go back and clean and get her some things?”

“Yeah, of course,” Farlan answered without hesitation. “Go ahead, lie down.”

He led you to one of the beds in the clinic room, and Annie immediately dashed towards the door while Farlan began to pull out everything he’d need to help you.

“I’ll be back…” she turned to give you one last menacing glance as if to tell you to behave, then she left without another word.

“Annie,” Farlan said as he washed his hands at a nearby sink. He turned to you when he finished. “I’m Farlan. Nice to meet you.”

You tried to get a glimpse at the card that hung from his neck to see if he was telling the truth, and he was. From what you could see, his identification matched. The picture on the card matched his face. His first name was indeed ‘Farlan’. And although you couldn’t make out much of his last name, you did see that it began with a “C,” and ended with a “ch”.

“Nice to meet you, too,” you said weakly, satisfied that he didn’t appear to be lying to you.

Farlan gave you a reassuring grin as he snapped on some blue gloves, and rolled a chair over to your bed. From what you could see, he had all the materials necessary to clean up and stitch your wound. There was a needle. A needle driver. Scissors. Tissue forceps. Some gauze. Alcohol. A local anesthetic. You let out a sigh of relief.

While Farlan had questions for you, particularly how your wrist wound occurred, he kept his mouth shut. In that moment, he only cared to help you. And oddly enough, nothing he did fazed you in the slightest. Unlike most patients who closed their eyes over stitches, you watched his every move like a hawk. You didn’t flinch, not once.

“Did the two of you manage to walk by the cafeteria by any chance, on your way down here?” Farlan broke the silence.

You watched as he threaded the needle through the driver in one swoop, and cocked a brow up at him as your reply. He smiled and returned to your wrist.

“I’m only asking because I wanted to see if the vending machines had any peanut butter cups.”

“Peanut butter cups?” you asked, amused.

“Yeah, they’re my guilty pleasure. I think I give the vending machines here a quarter of my paycheck every week for those things,” he gave you a sweet lop-sided grin.

This managed to get a laugh out of you. You were glad he didn’t question you about your injury and chose to catch you off guard with small talk instead.

It was unexpected.

“So...you’re Karina’s sister,” Farlan said as he began to poke through your skin.

You tried not to glare at him. Even though you knew he was continuing small talk in an effort to distract you from him stitching you up, a flash of annoyance ran through you.

It faded when he grinned at you again.

“Yes,” you trailed off slowly.

“Are the two of you close?”

You looked at a nearby poster on the wall away from Farlan so you could roll your eyes. Then you turned back to him.

“No. But hopefully we can be,” you try to give him a sad smile. “That’s why I’m here.”

Touched by your feigned sincerity (unbeknownst to him) , Farlan returned the sad smile to you and stopped stitching you up for a moment. He paused, and nodded.

“That’s great...family is important,” he continued, intensely focusing on your wound now instead of your face.

You tilted your head at the shift. While Farlan was happy and easy-going at first, his mood seemed to have soured the moment he mentioned family. He continued to work on your stitches with deftness, but this time he worked in silence. You had no complaints. But you did miss the way he’d grin up at you here and there, smiling your way as if you couldn’t end his life in seconds with the very tools he had in his hands.

Farlan didn’t know what you really were, or who you really were.

He didn’t treat you like a monster.

It was almost nice.

“There we go,” Farlan said gently, pulling you out of your thoughts.

You watched as he snipped off the end of the suture and finished up with you. He continued to clean up the surrounding area, then threw his gloves into the trash can. While he washed his hands, he began to calculate your intravenous drip rate in his head.

“I’m going to give you an IV. You lost a lot of blood, but not enough to need a transfusion. But you are dehydrated. Your body needs some fluids. And rest.”

You tried to raise your wrist up, but couldn’t find the strength. You merely studied the stitches, counting eight going straight across your wrist.

“It should heal well,” Farlan said quietly, as he returned back to you, watching the way you looked at his handiwork. “Faint scarring, but nothing too bad.”

You nodded.

It wouldn’t be the first scar you had.

“I’ll set up everything for your IV. Okay?” Farlan reassured you.

Another nod. You watched as he set up everything for IV drip, seamlessly moving through the clinic like it was his own personal haven. Farlan knew what he was doing, so much so that you wondered if he had to give it a second thought. He hummed to himself as if he were in his own little world, giving you sweet grins here and there as he picked up supplies.

And for a brief flicker in time, you envied him.

You closed your eyes and realized you must’ve lost more blood than you thought. You knew severe blood loss could make a person loopy, and this had to be one of those cases.

Why else would your brain fire those buried thoughts at you like that?

You broke yourself out of your daze when Farlan returned back to you.

You noticed he had new gloves on, this time pink.

“It’s all we have,” he laughed when he caught your eye.

“You wear them well,” you quipped back.

He gave you another smile before swiping an alcohol pad over the inside of your elbow. Then he readied the intravenous needle.

“Slight pinch,” he warned with a light tone.

You felt nothing when he found your vein with ease. Either Farlan was good at what he did, or you were just _**that**_ numb to everything. The cold sensation of the intravenous fluids ran up your arm and throughout your body and you shuddered at the feeling.

Then, in a moment that surprised you, you found yourself yawning.

Truth be told, you were tired. You had been running for so long that this was the first time in a long time that you had stopped. Your lids dropped heavily as you watched Farlan tape the IV tube down, eyes trailing down to the name etched out on the side of his wrist.

“Your girlfriend is so lucky, you’re so...sweet,” you mumbled sleepily as you traced your finger over his tattoo.

Farlan let out a soft laugh over this but he said nothing. You continued to trace over his skin, feeling loopy in your relaxed state.

“Maria,” you whispered, studying the tattoo once more. “She’s so lucky.”

Again, Farlan said nothing, only offering you a sad smile for a response. When you stopped playing with his marred skin, he adjusted your sleeve and began to clean up the rest of the caked up blood on your other hand and arm.

“Get some rest, okay?” he said, his voice gentle.

Yet again, you listened without protest.

You tried to close your eyes, and relaxed into the bed. Farlan wiped the rest of your blood off of you, making you melt into his tender touch.

You drifted off to sleep before you knew it.

* * *

“Well, hello. I thought I lost you there for a second.”

Levi shielded his eyes from the ugly fluorescent hospital lights with his good arm, and scowled as he woke up from his slumber.

“I got shot, Erwin. What do you want?”

Erwin chuckled and shoved his hands into his pocket before taking a seat adjacent to Levi’s hospital bed.

“I came back to see how you were. And to give you an update on the situation.”

Gingerly, Levi sat up in his bed and tried to adjust his eyes to the lighting. He hadn’t realized he fell asleep. When Erwin and the rest of the team got to the scene, they didn’t hesitate to rush Levi to the hospital. He argued the entire way there that he didn’t need to see anyone. Although getting shot by you hurt like fuck, you had somehow managed not to severely injure him. The bleeding was substantial for a bullet wound, but mild all things considered.

The doctors didn’t take more than an hour to treat the wound. And when Levi was given the option to take some painkillers, he told everyone to leave so he could sleep it off.

“The young woman Kilian shot had identification on her. Named Pieck Finger. But...we looked into the name and nothing. Not a trace, a fingerprint, not even a school record,” Erwin laughed bitterly. “All she has is a name. Well, had. You were correct when you said it was likely someone who worked with her.”

Levi clicked his tongue and nodded.

“They’re still down there?”

“Yes. I have Hange, Mike, and Nanaba at the scene. Bertholdt, too.”

“I don’t like that kid,” Levi interrupted.

Erwin gave him a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

“Noted. How do you feel?”

“Like I got shot in the shoulder,” Levi answered dryly.

“It’s a good thing you injured her,” Erwin stated, ignoring Levi’s attempt at humor. “I can only imagine how this would have turned out had you not. You’re lucky that she missed.”

A beat of silence passed as Levi thought back to that moment.

You pushed him out of the way without hesitation, and then entered a world of your own. Levi remembered the way you shot your target with pin-point accuracy, perfectly centering the bullet onto her forehead. You were so calm. So quiet. So quick. You had entered your own little world and no one could reach you. The blood had already pooled around your wrist when you killed her, and you didn’t even flinch.

Most importantly, you didn’t miss.

“Yeah,” Levi said. “I’m lucky.”

Erwin gave him a smile.

“I won’t hold you up, but I wanted to let you know our focuses have shifted now.”

“Right. And the mole?”

The other man sighed and slumped forward, folding his hands across his knees.

“I didn’t think we’d lose Reiner so soon. Seeing as we found him at the scene as well...I do believe those plans are shot. Our only other chance was getting another member of the Warriors. But seeing as Kilian is on the run now, I think our best bet is to focus on the leader of the faction instead.”

A grunt of acknowledgement.

“I will come up with something else. In the meantime, I do not want you on the field anymore. There are other agents available for that, Levi. You need to rest,” Erwin stated firmly.

Although he disliked it, Levi silently agreed. His injury rendered him useless. The last thing he needed to do was field work, unable to defend himself or anyone else. He let out an exhausted exhale.

“I should leave you, I have to get back to the office. Is Isabel coming to pick you up?” Erwin asked as he stood up.

“Yeah.”

“Good. I’ll keep you updated if we hear about any other developments. Movements. Things of that nature. But for now, I want you to rest.”

“Mm.”

“I mean it, Levi. I do not want to see you in the office,” Erwin commanded while he put his jacket back on.

“I heard you,” Levi mumbled, annoyed.

Erwin laughed as he began to walk out the door, then paused. He placed his large hand onto the door frame and looked back with a smile.

“You know…at this point in your career, and with an injury like that,” Erwin gestured to Levi’s bandaged left shoulder. “You could retire if you wanted to.”

Levi stayed silent over this.

“Just a thought. I’ll leave you now. Get some rest. And forget about Kilian, Levi. She’s not for you to think about anymore. I want you to focus on rest.”

On that last note, Erwin left Levi to his lonesome once more. As he watched Erwin disappear out of view, he shook his head.

Erwin’s words echoed in his head.

Not only his comment on retirement, but the comment regarding you.

_“Forget about Kilian."_

“Tch,” Levi scoffed.

To forget about you, Levi would first have to _think_ about you.

He’d have to think about your long legs. Your shit-eating smirk. Your childish laugh. The softness of your skin. The way your eyes changed when you realized he’d hurt you.

And Levi never thought about those things.

In simpler terms; Levi never thought about you.

* * *

A gentle tug on your arm roused you awake, forcing you to blink away the steel gray eyes that swam through your mind every time you closed your eyes.

You yawned.

Although short, it had to be the best rest you’d gotten in a long time.

You opened your bleary eyes to see Farlan’s smiling face.

“Hey. How do you feel?”

Another yawn. “Better, I think,” you managed to get out, your voice hoarse.

Farlan nodded and handed you a cup of water while you tried to sit up. You graciously accepted it while he removed your IV.

“How long was I asleep for?”

“Maybe an hour or so. I tried not to disturb you,” Farlan ran his hand over the back of his head and gave you a coy smile. “Hopefully you got a good sleep?”

You laughed at his thoughtfulness and nodded, humming your answer.

He swiped another alcohol pad over your skin again, then applied a bandaid over it. Giving you a tentative smile now, he sat down in his chair and looked at you for a moment too long. He cleared his throat.

“So...about your injury…” he started.

You gulped your water down and tried to hide the roll of your eyes with the cup. _Here we go_ , you thought.

“I don’t want to assume,” Farlan continued. “But injuries like that…”

He sighed and furrowed his brows at you, placing his hands across the side of the bed.

“I normally have to report things like that. And if you need help, we have resources and people who can help you,” he said gently.

You realized what he was inferring and found the energy to sit up straight. The last thing you needed were counselors and people asking about the state of your mental health, and possibly being discovered.

If he hadn’t just saved your life, you would’ve head butted him and ran for the door.

But as you looked at Farlan’s face with all its sincerity etched across every feature, you realized you didn’t have that much energy left in you.

“Farlan, it’s not what you think -"

“I’m not trying to push you. I understand if you don’t want to talk to me about this, I’m not asking you to. But I can’t let you walk out of here without -“

“I know, but -”

“Hey, are we finished up here?” you heard a familiar voice say.

The two of you stopped talking for a moment to turn toward the door. And there stood Annie, leaning against the door frame with a bored look on her face.

“Uh, yes, Karina. We are. But I was telling your sister -” Farlan began.

“Wait, Farlan. I know what you’re going to say,” Annie said, putting on her best fake concerned face that would’ve rivaled one of your fake ones.

She held up her hand to cut him off but stayed where she stood. Then she clutched her hands to her chest in a begging position.

“This...isn’t new with my sister. But please don’t report this. I promise I’ll look after her. I didn’t want to bring her anywhere else because I knew we could trust you to keep this a secret. I can take care of her, I swear.”

 _Impressive_ , you thought. You gave her a thumbs up behind Farlan’s back, a surge of pride flashing through you. From the way she clenched her jaw, you could tell it took everything in her not to flip you off. Again.

Farlan turned back to you with a frown.

“I don’t know…” he said slowly.

“Look, Farlan,” you reached out to place your hands on top of his. “I am so grateful for what you’ve done. I know what this looks like. But I promise I’ll be okay.”

He exhaled a long breath out. You could tell he still didn’t trust that you would be okay, or that you’d be okay with Annie watching over you. But the moment you reached out for him, you knew he was putty in your hands. You smiled.

“Okay,” he finally said, still tentative. “Alright.”

He sighed and rolled his chair away to go back to the sink so he could wash his hands, gently pulling out of your grasp. When his back was turned, you faced Annie and gave her a wink before hopping off the bed. She rolled her eyes at you and stepped out the door as if to silently tell you she’d wait for you upstairs.

You nodded and began to take your leave.

“Wait, before you go -” you heard Farlan say as you walked toward the door.

“Yes?” you turned back around.

“Here,” he got up and walked over to you, handing you a zip-lock bag. Inside were alcohol pads, some ointment, antibiotics, gauze, scissors, and medical tape. “For upkeep. Take those antibiotics until they’re gone to prevent infection.”

Speechless, you shook your head up and down with a small smile.

“Thank you,” your face broke into a wider smile as you took the supplies from him.

Farlan grinned and ran his hand over the back of his head.

“Yeah, well. Of course. It’s my job,” he stuttered, fumbling over his words.

You laughed at his awkwardness around you, making him laugh too.

“Sorry. It’s late. I’m not trying to keep you. I should really let you go.”

“I’ll see you around?”

It was your attempt at a joke. Truth be told, you were unsure of how long you’d be here. But that still didn’t stop Farlan from answering you too quickly.

“Hopefully. If you are still around, come back and see me.”

You raised a playful brow up at him.

“Oh, whoa. Sorry. I just meant, I can take your stitches out then. But if not, any local urgent care or whatever will do,” he said nervously.

You didn’t say a word, but you looked at him with a smile. Although he wasn’t the first person to stumble around you, Farlan’s awkwardness with you held a sincerity that no one else’s did. Apart from Eren. But that didn’t count. Not with the way in which you thought about him. Unsure of how to feel and what to say about Farlan’s genuine kindness, you casted it off as another side-effect of your injury, even though you could stand without swaying now.

Without another word, you simply waved and gave him a grin. Then you disappeared back up the stairs to Annie’s dorm with a quickness.

Even in your dazed state, you made sure to remember the route to and from Annie’s dorm. You didn’t really feel like scaling her building again, and you had to make sure you knew how to leave.

Properly.

When you got back to her room, Annie was sitting in bed with her laptop on her lap, paying you no mind upon your entrance.

During your time in the clinic, she had managed to clean the dorm of your blood. There wasn’t a trace of it on her bedsheets, which now looked new. Not a trace on her blanket. Nothing on the carpet.

Even to this day, she impressed you with her quickness.

“I’m going to burn the sheets tomorrow morning,” she gestured to a trash bag in the corner of her room. “And your scarves.”

“Those are designer,” you placed your hands on your hips and walked forward.

“And tomorrow they’ll be ashes,” she monotoned. She drew out a long exhale then closed her laptop shut with a snap. “Look, I don’t want to know what happened. The less I know, the better.”

She climbed off the bed and handed you a box sitting by the door. You peeked down at it and realized she had handed you an airbed along with a pump, and a small comforter. There were also some shitty, cheap University branded clothes she no doubt picked up from the campus store. You looked back at her.

Even through the dark of the night, you could see the quiet anger behind her eyes.

What you couldn’t place, however, was the direction of the anger.

Was she mad at you for showing up?

Or was she mad at you for reminding her of her past?

“Look. I owe you. After what you did for me, I owe you,” she said in hushed whispers and gritted teeth, bitterness doused in every word. “You can stay here for a few days but that’s it. Then I don’t want to see you again.”

You nodded and thanked her. You didn’t feel like poking the bear for once. And you knew you had few allies left in the world. If they weren’t trying to kill you or connected to people who would, they were trying to lock you up.

Annie was the only person in the world who didn’t have a say or care in either of those matters. The last thing you needed to do was piss her off. With one final nod of acknowledgement, Annie shoved the box towards your chest, then shuffled out the door to go somewhere else for a moment.

When the door closed with a slam, you rolled your eyes. Always so full of angst.

With her gone, you figured you could at least set up your own bed. You had no idea how she acquired everything so quickly, but you weren’t complaining. And after a few minutes of watching the slow inflation of your air bed, you yawned and decided to change focus so you ripped away the curtains to look out the window. You let out a laugh of amusement when you realized she’d even wiped away the splatters of blood you left when you began your climb. Always so thorough, that one.

With a sigh, you stared at the moonlight that poured in through the windows. A crescent moon shone down on you tonight. And when you looked down at your wrist, you ran your finger along the raised stitches and closed your eyes, thinking of the person responsible for your new scar.

Despite Levi hurting you, you couldn’t help but wonder how he was faring from his injury. One of your best skills (according to Zeke) was your ability to make a dead shot. Zeke used to say that you could shoot the wall and figure out how to make the bullet bounce back to your target if you really wanted to.

You were just that good.

And there was a truth in that. You didn’t miss when you hit Galliard, Pieck, or anyone else.

And you didn’t miss when you hit Levi.

Your eyes fluttered shut once more, and you ran your finger over your stitches again. Your time with him was always too short, and you wanted nothing more than to see him again. But you couldn’t.

You had more important things to deal with first.

Once you were done with Zeke, you were going to make it a point to see Levi one last time.

* * *

Levi jolted awake on the couch and groaned. He jerked his bad shoulder too far up in the midst of waking up, moving it past its capable range of motion, immediately sending up a wave of pain through his arm. He sat up with a sigh and brought his good hand up to his head so he could massage his temples.

It had been like that for the past few hours since he got home. He’d have moments where he thought he fell asleep, but really, he was just successful enough in closing his eyes for more than half an hour. On and on it went, moments of consciousness in between being awake and ‘asleep’ while he tried to shake off a pair of playful eyes that kept following his unconscious thoughts.

“How do you feel?” a quiet voice asked.

Levi looked up toward the kitchen to see Isabel by the stove. She had her back turned to him, but from where he sat, he could see she was making a cup of tea for him. He got off the couch with caution and walked to the kitchen.

“Okay.”

“Good,” she said haughtily, still not looking his way.

He placed both fists on the counter and leaned forward, trying not to press down onto his bad shoulder. Although Isabel was tearful when she found out Levi had been shot, that concern faded as soon as she made it home. Being that Isabel was still rightfully a teenager, her emotions came and went.

So her concern for Levi came. And then it went, quickly replaced by her earlier anger from the week before.

Levi couldn’t blame her. He still hadn’t apologized for snapping on her in the car. And a lot of their days were spent like this. Tip-toeing around each other, with small casual conversations here and there as if they weren’t family but semi-friendly roommates who actually hated one another.

“I made you tea,” Isabel said, turning to Levi and handing him his cup.

“Thanks. Nothing for you?”

“No. I think I’m going to go back to sleep. It’s late, Levi. I just came downstairs to check on you.”

With his cup still raised to his lips, Levi glanced at the time on the stove and realized it was past midnight. On a normal night, Isabel would be in bed snoring too loudly to herself right now. But instead, she was here. Checking up on him.

He cleared his throat.

“Thank you.”

“Mhm. I’m going to go back upstairs now. Night, Levi,” Isabel said quietly, still unable to look him directly in the eye.

Levi watched as she began to walk toward the steps, her bunny slippers shuffling across the floor in the way that always annoyed him because she refused to pick her feet up.

“Isabel,” Levi called out, placing his cup down onto the counter.

“Yes, Levi?”

He looked away, then back to her, studying her face. Her hair stuck out in random places from her rolling around in her bed. And her signature cowlick curled on the top of her head like an alfalfa sprout growing from the ground. Like a moment frozen in time, Isabel didn’t change when it came to those aspects. To Levi, she still looked like the grimy little kid he met when he first volunteered at the orphanage. The same kid who intruded on his personal space and gave him a hug whenever he’d spend some time with her even if he just dropped by to give the place some supplies.

Levi sighed. “I’m sorry.”

Isabel said nothing so Levi continued.

“I shouldn’t have yelled at you, brat. Or tried to control where you go and what...you do,” he let out a deep breath. “I don’t want shit happening to you or for you to get caught up in my -”

He couldn’t even finish his sentence as Isabel embraced him into a rib crushing hug, careful to avoid his injured shoulder. When the shock of her running towards him passed, Levi let out a soft laugh and tried to return the hug back with his good arm. He ran his hand over the back of her head three times, remaining quiet even when he felt the front of his shirt getting damp.

“I’m sorry, too, big bro,” Isabel muffled into his chest all at once as if she’d been holding in the apology for years.

Again, Levi said nothing and continued patting her head, relieved that he had earned her forgiveness even though he felt like he didn’t deserve it.

The two of them stood in the kitchen like that for a while. And when Isabel was ready to pull away, Levi held onto her for just a second longer.

“Alright. Go to bed, kid,” he said, finally.

Isabel nodded against his chest and Levi finally let her go.

“Will you be okay? Do you need help going upstairs? I can -”

“No. Go to sleep, Isabel. I’ll be fine. I’m going to take the couch. It’s easier on my arm anyway.”

Although she seemed hesitant, she nodded again.

“Okay,” she sniffled, wiping away at her damp cheeks.

When she was done, Isabel shuffled back up the steps, still refusing to pick her feet up off the floor. And instead of feeling annoyed at the sound this time, Levi smiled. As soon as she made it back up the steps and he heard her shut the door, he turned the lights off in the kitchen and headed back to the living room.

It was late. And he needed to sleep. Actually sleep. With a sigh, he took a seat on the edge of the couch and looked out the window as moonlight streamed in. A half crescent moon peeked out of the night sky tonight.

With his good hand, he reached up to his bandaged bullet wound with two fingers, and thought of the person responsible for giving him his new scar.

During his moments in and out of consciousness, he’d already asked himself enough questions, none of which could be answered. Levi didn’t have the answers as to why you pushed him out of the way. He didn’t know why you didn’t kill him for maiming you, and why you chose to wound him instead.

But mostly?

He couldn’t figure out why he didn’t go after you.

Levi drew in a long breath at the thought of you and wondered.

If he were ever given the chance, would he let you run away from him that easily again?


	7. Runaway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

>   
>  _“I felt a strange delight in causing my decay.”_   
>  _― Robert Browning, Pauline: A Fragment of a confession_   
> 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>   
> **TW: violence and the usual**  
>  When you see the *, you should play the following songs in order for the optimal listening experience!
> 
> The Game of Love - Daft Punk  
> Runaway - Yeah Yeah Yeahs

_“Your next assignment,” Zeke said as he handed you a polaroid. On the back was a hastily scribbled location etched in blue ink. “Maria Church,” he finished._

_You took the photo from him and your eyes flew over the person in the picture as you tried to commit their face to memory. In the picture Zeke gave you, you could see that your target was average height. She had freckles strewn across her round face, dirty blonde hair, and big doe eyes that reminded you of a Disney cartoon. You looked at her once more, exhaled, then turned the polaroid over to memorize the location of the job._

_“What does she do anyway? Never heard of her.”_

_You lolled your head back on the couch and peered up at Zeke for more answers as he rounded behind you._

_“Filmmaker,” he said simply as he lit up a cigarette, making you grimace._

_Noticing your disgust, Zeke blew rings of smoke towards your face, only barely missing you when you flipped over the head of the couch instead. Although you gave him an immediate punch to the arm when you got to his side, he hardly flinched. He only chose to blow the smoke in the opposite direction this time._

_“That’s all you got for me?” you asked._

_Zeke rolled his eyes, cigarette still hanging loosely from his mouth while he grumbled. He beckoned to you to follow him to the balcony. You watched as he tapped the ashes of his cigarette over the railing._

_“You know...those things will kill you,” you sang with a teasing lilt to your voice._

_Without missing a beat, Zeke looked back to you and said, “Here’s to hoping,” before huffing on the cigarette once more._

_The two of you shared a laugh over this, a deep chuckle echoing from Zeke’s chest while you almost scoffed at his response._

_It was one of the reasons you got along with him so well apart from having known him most of your life. Both of you were self-destructive to a fault. You personally placed the blame on your collective upbringings. The way you looked at it—it was better to set yourself on fire before anyone else could do it for you._

_“She recently made a documentary that’s got the entire political world shitting themselves,” Zeke replied, bringing you back to reality._

_You leaned over the railing and cocked your head at Zeke, one brow raised up._

_“Won’t killing her just bring more attention to the film?"_

_“That’s what I said. But it didn’t seem important to ask more questions,” he answered. “Check will be cleared as soon as you get the job done.”_

_You frowned. You knew he was omitting_ **_something_ ** _._

_The Warriors had targeted a ton of politicians, political activists, agitators and the alike in the past. Although this would be your first filmmaker, something told you this hit was different. Almost personal in a sense from the way Zeke refused to tell you more._

_There was nothing you could do about it though._

_If you didn’t do it, someone else would. Politicians and rich people alike lined Zeke’s pockets handsomely in order to silence their oppositions, put the people they wanted into power, and so on and so forth. And yes. Sometimes the hits were personal. It was nothing new. Even without the Warriors—without Zeke—you knew this went on behind the scenes all over the world._

_The only thing the Warriors did was speed it up._

_Doing it behind the Warriors also ensured that Zeke had connections_ **_everywhere_ ** _. And consequently, it promised all of you freedom anywhere. After all, when you helped those in power keep their power—what else could they give you in return but the ability to run wherever you wanted, whenever you wanted, doing whatever you pleased?_

_You laughed to yourself._

_“I’m sending Galliard to do the job with you,” Zeke finished, wiping his glasses onto his shirt._

_That got your attention._

_**"What?"** you snapped. _

_“It’s too risky to send you alone,” he said as he put his glasses back on, ignoring the fury in your eyes. “She’s supposed to have security with her.”_

_You rolled your eyes at the thought of two burly men dressed all in black attempting to bum rush you. The thought alone was laughable._

_“Please, I’ll be fine.”_

_“I’m sure. But I can’t risk anything going wrong with this one,” he said firmly, jaw tensing as he spoke._

_When you responded by rolling your eyes, Zeke simply sighed then walked away back into his apartment. This wasn’t new with you but he couldn’t be bothered. While you didn’t have an issue with Porco, you fucking_ **_hated_ ** _working with others and Zeke knew that. You didn’t work well with others because you didn’t need anyone’s help, didn’t_ **_want_ ** _it, thought it was fucking useless._

_You were better off alone._

_You groaned and glared daggers into Zeke’s back. And as if he could feel your stare, he turned back around to face you. He closed his eyes slowly at the expression on your face, already tired of the argument budding up in your chest. He sighed through his nostrils and waved a flippant hand at you._

_“Look at it this way. You’ll get to dress up. You_ **_love_ ** _shit like that, no?”_

_You frowned. Although he did have a point. You had a beautiful black Mugler gown you’d been meaning to pull out of your closet. When you’d come across the simple spaghetti strap dress with its deep sweetheart neckline kept together by a string of silver bars that looked like staples, you were sold. It was simple and sweet. The long high slit on the side only kept together by three silver links matching the ones on the chest gave you easy access to your gun, too. You’d be dressed to kill. The joke was almost too easy to make. But even fashion couldn’t be your savior from the hell that came with working with other people._

_Because when the day of the hit finally came, Porco did nothing but prove you right._

_Always one to rush into everything without an actual plan, he tailed Maria and her guards far too early. He did that even though you told him exactly not to, not even a mere five minutes ago when the two of you were driving to the theater. You had no choice but to follow after him which alerted her guards to follow the two of you in return._

_In a flash you had pulled Porco into the photo booth and pretended to make out with him and take pictures with him as if the two of you were a real couple. You even put a few bills into the machine to make sure the flashes would go off while the two of you took as many photos as needed to get her security off your back. You flashed a grin at the camera for the last shot, then shoved Porco’s chest, making him flinch._

_“That’s for not using that thing three feet above your ass,” you scolded while you pushed at his forehead with your index finger. “I told you not to rush. Now we have to figure out another opportunity to get her.”_

_Porco rolled his eyes at this although you caught a hint of shame in the way he looked back to you. He paused._

_“So what do we do?” he asked, sounding bored and tired of the job already._

_“Just do everything I tell you to,” you answered with irritation._

_And he actually did._

_He followed your instructions to the letter, taking out both guards while you took care of Maria. Looking back, you think you shot her in the bathroom and escaped through the ceiling vents. Truth be told, you couldn’t remember. You didn’t remember_ **_every_ ** _detail of your kills—there were too many of them at this point to know them all by heart. It wasn’t like you relished in it anyway, you weren’t a fucking monster or a serial killer. This was just your job. All you could remember were bits and pieces of everything._

_But mostly?_

_You just remembered that you did them._

_Maria never saw you coming as she came out of the washroom. You waited for her to exit first. And as soon as she left her stall, you left yours. Your fingers ghosted over the long slit in your gown. And you reached for your silenced gun, neatly attached to the holster on your other leg._

_The last thing you remembered after shooting her was the sound of her head hitting the sink with a—_

* * *

**_BANG!_ **

Levi winced at the sound of clanging and banging of pots and pans. Cacophonous, discordant, and clumsy, he knew the source of the noise could only be coming from one person. After all, every time she entered the kitchen, Levi thought a tornado came through. He sat up slowly, feeling the pain shoot up a bit in his arm as sleep began to wear off. 

“Morning, big bro!” Isabel chirped as she looked his way. “I’m making pancakes for us!”

With one hand to his head, Levi surveyed the kitchen from afar, eyes slowly opening to the scene before him. 

There were bowls, measuring cups, and utensils **everywhere**. Remnants of ingredients were strewn about here and there. He was pretty sure at one point he noticed speckles of vanilla extract splattered all over his counters. It looked as if Isabel was trying to do her best Jackson Pollock impression, her medium being the amber brown extract instead of paint. Flour was scattered all over the counters and the floor. Half-broken egg shells and room temperature butter melting out of its paper had set up shop on another one of his counters. In another corner he noticed oranges cut up in half, completely drained of its juices, with a slight ring of pulp still left around the rim, no doubt from Isabel’s inability to squeeze them all the way. 

Levi sighed. 

“Morning, Isabel,” he said as he made his way to the kitchen. 

Isabel stopped whisking for a second, face turning sheepish as she gave Levi a coy look.

“Sorry for the mess,” she said with a grin. 

Levi gave her a quick glance, then looked at the state of the kitchen again. He could tell she had gotten up early to do all of this for them. Or him, rather. He responded by putting his good hand out and ruffling her hair. 

“I’ll clean it up later,” he said as he walked away towards the stairs. “I’ll be back.”

Isabel nodded and continued to cook, placing a pan onto the stove while she finished whisking her ingredients together. Levi had one foot on the stairs by the time he heard the clicking of the stove. But as soon as he heard that, he stopped walking. He looked back towards Isabel, who was whisking away and checking her phone while the stove had an empty pan on it, a slow fire burning under it as more and more time passed. 

“Oi,” he barked to get her attention. 

Her wide eyes flickered his way and she tilted her head to the side like a confused puppy. 

“Try not to burn the place down,” Levi said, jutting his chin toward the stove then heading straight up the steps before Isabel could respond properly. 

He could hear her shouting something along the lines of how it was “only one time!” when he reached his bedroom. 

Her loud grumbles made him chuckle as he thought back to the time she almost set his place on fire. 

It was around the time he had adopted her. She was only fourteen at the time, and, similar to now, she got up early to make him breakfast. It was some time during the first week of living with him. She told him it was her way of saying thank you. She tried to make eggs and bacon.

What Levi got instead were the blackened ashes of the food completely burnt in the pan. 

That morning, he was awakened by the sound of the smoke detector as a grease fire broke out in the kitchen. Levi was quick to react, practically zipping downstairs not wasting a moment to cover the pan with a metal lid, fingers moving with the speed of lightning while he turned the heat off. All he could remember after that was Isabel’s face of pure horror as she buried her face into her hands and uttered out something along the lines of “don’t take me back,” in the midst of her wails. 

Levi responded by pulling her into a long, tight hug until she stopped crying. When he pulled away, he said nothing. He didn’t make her apologize as she had nothing to be sorry for. All he did after that was take her out for breakfast. Then he promised he’d teach her how to cook another time. 

He stopped brushing his teeth momentarily and laughed for a second at the memory. 

Some things never changed. 

By the time Levi made it back downstairs, Isabel had taken the liberty in “cleaning” up her mess. It was the way Isabel always cleaned up after herself. Essentially what she did was group her messes together. Dishes were now with dishes in the sink. All the food was now piled up onto _one_ counter rather than every other counter. 

“Here’s your plate, Levi,” Isabel said happily when she saw him come down the steps. 

He glanced at the kitchen table. Isabel had their respective plates set next to one another, the way she always used to place them when she still lived with him because she “liked talking to him better that way.” 

When Levi finally sat down, he noticed that Isabel had also made sure to cut everything up for him. His pancakes were cut into mismatched squares while his bacon had been broken up into small pieces. A metal straw was added into his orange juice, and of course, his tea was freshly brewed—all placed to his right for easy convenience. He let out a soft laugh, left arm moving slightly in its brace as he subconsciously thought to reach out to ruffle her hair. It was too difficult to do so with his right arm, but Isabel understood his intention in silence. The smile on his face was enough for her anyway. 

“Thanks, Isabel,” Levi said. 

She gave him a wide grin and responded by shoveling a giant piece of pancake into her mouth. The two of them ate in silence for a while with Isabel making jokes here and there and telling him all about how school was going. 

And Levi had to admit that it felt...nice. Familiar. Like old times. It was then that Levi also realized how quiet the house was without Isabel around. He was never home enough to notice. When he wasn’t chasing...you, or in the office, he was at the hospital visiting Kenny, always coming home so late that he just went straight to sleep after his quick showers. He couldn’t remember the last time he sat in his own home eating something that wasn’t takeout or leftovers. 

He looked down at his plate—at Isabel’s thoughtful gesture—then back to her face which he could now see had flour all over it. 

He sighed to himself. 

“What’s wrong? Is it bad?” Isabel stopped talking about class for a moment and turned to her brother. 

“No. It’s good, you did a nice job,” Levi replied. 

He meant that. Her cooking had greatly improved since she’d moved out. 

Another thing he had missed during the frenzy that was his life this past year. 

Isabel beamed at him and leaned into his side, careful not to put too much pressure on his arm. 

“Thank you, I’ve really been trying to get better!”

Levi could tell, but he said nothing in return. 

Upon his sudden silence, Isabel shifted in her seat, giving furtive glances at her brother as she tried to figure out what was going on. 

Levi wasn’t an open book and she had known this since he adopted her. It didn’t take her long to figure out all of his silent ways of communication. She was probably the person who understood Levi’s code of language best anyway. 

At first she thought his silence in this moment was due to his injury...perhaps even Kenny. But for the first time, she wasn’t sure what it was about and she didn’t have a name for the emotion she felt. She cleared her throat. 

“Um…so…” 

“Hm?” Levi finally answered, head snapping up to meet hers. 

“So...I’ve been meaning to tell you something…” she tried to finish as Levi pierced her with an intense stare.

Isabel looked away then placed her fork down onto the table. She gulped.

This was a conversation she had meant to have with him a while ago. She promised herself that it would be less of a question and more of a statement. While she loved her brother to death, she also needed to show him that she was capable of taking care of herself. And she needed him to trust that. She hoped with all her heart he’d trust that. 

She cleared her throat again.

“So...next weekend I’m going to be visiting another university…” she began, trailing off when Levi’s eyes narrowed slightly. 

“Get on with it, Isabel,” Levi replied in exhaustion although there was no sign of irritation in his voice. 

It wasn’t really a lack of patience with Isabel. Levi had no patience for people beating around the bush in general. Isabel knew this, too, and she used all her strength to fight her eye roll off. She knew she had to approach this delicately. Pragmatic yet firm. Just like how she practiced in the mirror.

“They have this new vet program they’re doing and anyone interested can come spend the weekend to check the college out, check out their labs, classes, meet some professors. It’s a really good opportunity for me, and I just wanted—” she paused to take a breath after spitting her sentences out all at once. “I just wanted to let you know I...I already booked a place with some friends so we can see the place together. It’s just for two days. And it’s safe, I checked and double checked. I’ll forward you the address and everything and—” 

Levi put a hand up to signal to her to stop, and immediately her face dropped along with her heart. Nothing but complete silence as Levi thought over his words carefully. He shut his eyes for a few seconds, then looked back to her with a softened expression. Isabel couldn’t tell what he was thinking.

“Okay,” Levi finally said. 

Isabel’s eyes bugged out of her head. 

“Okay?”

“Yeah, okay.” 

“Okay?! Really?!” 

“Yeah. Have fun,” Levi said, grabbing his nearly empty tea cup to hold up to his lips. 

There was a squeal bubbling in Isabel’s throat, and Levi could feel the joy radiating off of her. Usually she’d attack him with a rib crushing hug like she did yesterday, and he was surprised she was keeping it together so well. Then he heard sniffling and nearly choked on his tea. 

Isabel was crying. He hoped it was tears of joy but it felt callous to ask why. So he didn’t. What he did instead was push his chair back so he could walk to her other side. He did what he always did when she cried. He hugged her and ran his fingers through her hair in order to soothe her. 

She looked up at him with tears brimming in her eyes and a wide smile. “Thank you, Levi.”

He gave her a rare smile in return and said nothing, merely patting her head once more as his reply. 

“I’ll send you everything,” she said as she wiped her cheeks with her hands. “I’ll do it after class. I promise I’ll be fine.” 

“I know,” he said. 

He didn’t have to imply that there was no other option other than her being “fine”. He’d make sure of that either way. Isabel pressed her cheek into his side happily while she checked her phone for the time then pushed her seat back to get up. 

“Sorry,” she grinned. “I have to go get ready for class, I didn’t realize how long I took to make breakfast.”

Levi nodded and looked back at her mess, then back to her. 

“I’ll take you,” he said. 

It wasn’t really up for debate. 

In less than ten minutes, Levi had the kitchen sparkling clean and still managed to get Isabel to class on time. He promised he’d pick her up, too, after visiting Kenny. 

She wasn’t going to argue with him about dropping her off and picking her up anyway. Truth be told, she missed her brother more than she could express. Although these recent weeks of spending time with him were under odd circumstances and perhaps even dangerous ones, she honestly liked living with Levi. She liked being around him. Mostly she just liked knowing he was safe. 

Although they spoke every day and he picked her up from work all the time, this was different. This felt like their relationship before everything happened with Kenny’s illness. This felt like their relationship before everything at Levi’s job got so crazy that even she ended up getting involved in it. 

But despite the comfort in knowing her brother trusted her capability to take care of herself, Isabel couldn’t shake off Levi’s earlier silence. She knew it had less to do with her and more to do with Levi. 

In being forced to sit still, she could only imagine what else he was being forced to face now that he couldn’t bury himself in the escape that was work for him. 

Without work, Isabel wasn’t sure what else Levi had. 

She hated to think of what he’d choose to bury himself into when both the burden and boredom of being home-bound would finally set in for him. 

* * *

“I’m bored,” you whined again for the third time.

“I don’t care, get off my bed,” Annie said as she shoved your legs off her lap. 

You sighed and remained where you were, lying opposite to where she was sitting. You kicked your legs up to the ceiling and flexed your feet, staring at the bright red writing of Liberio Medical University (LMU) stitched across your ankles.

The clothes Annie had gotten you were all from the University store, so you were clad in collegiate wear from head to toe. The material was far too cheap for your liking. It lacked your flair for style. Although it was only yesterday, it felt like years since you last wore your Prada skirt and YSL turtleneck. Now they were ashes in some trash can in the forest, remnants of the fire Annie set in the early hours of the day. She made good on her promise and crept out of the dorm right before dawn approached. 

You wanted to follow her but there was no point. You had more clothes back in your apartment, and you would get back to it sooner than later. 

Not all was lost anyway. Luckily you were able to salvage your lingerie in the middle of the night as no blood got onto those. Your Prada boots were also saved during that time, safely tucked away in one of Annie’s drawers while she snored through the night. 

“Is this what you do all day? Lie around, bored?” you asked with a frown. 

Annie huffed through her nostrils, flaring them as she tried to finish her essay on her laptop.

“Don’t you have more important stuff to do? Like figuring out what to do with Zeke and your whole situation so you can get the hell out of here?” 

Your jaw clenched at the mention of Zeke’s name. 

He was the last person you wanted to think about seeing again even though you knew it was inevitable. And her question was laughable. You didn’t need to spend any more time thinking about what to do with Zeke because you spent the entire night thinking about it. 

Although it wasn’t hard to figure out a solution to your situation, you also knew you couldn’t rush the process. 

It’d take a few days before you could ensure a safe return. Supplies to pick up, people to bribe, threaten or blackmail and the like. By no means were you milking your injury, but you had to go back prepared. You had to go back smart. Even if you personally felt like Zeke was no threat to you alone, you never went into anything without thinking of your safety first. You always went into everything prepared for a fight. 

“I already know what I want to do,” you said nonchalantly as you checked your cuticles. 

“And that is?” Annie asked.

You sprang from your position and turned to Annie with a playful look on your face. You pouted and paused.

“What happened to not wanting to know shit?” you teased, making her recall her words to you from last night. 

Her eyes narrowed at you into such thin slits that it reminded you of a snake, and you were sure she had the venom to match. You giggled at her reaction and she shut her laptop close in response, getting off the bed in a hurry. You watched as she grabbed her tote bag and changed into a different hoodie other than the one she wore to sleep and sighed _for_ her. So boring, you thought, and you voiced it, too. 

“Yeah, well—I’m not here to entertain you. I have class at 11,” she said flatly as she grabbed her dorm key and slipped her sneakers on. “Don’t do anything stupid after I leave.”

You looked up at the ceiling in despair and put a hand over your heart. 

“Is that any way to talk to your sister, Karina?” 

If looks could kill, Annie would’ve put you six feet under with the glare she shot you. With another annoyed hiss through her nostrils, she began to rummage through her bag for something before tossing a thin white card down onto her bed. 

“Here,” she said. “It’s a cafeteria card. You can...go get something to eat while I’m gone.” 

You picked up the card with your long nails and examined it front and back with fascination before an idea sprung into your mind. You paused then glanced up at her. 

“Hey... does this work on the vending machines by any chance?” 

Annie paused in her tracks as she reached for her doorknob. Turning back to you now, she raised a thin brow up, eyes glinting at you with both a curiosity and a warning. 

“...why?” she asked slowly. 

“Just wondering.”

She couldn’t even fight the eye roll that lodged itself into her head so hard she could feel it in her skull. 

You were up to **something**. 

And while she didn’t know what, she knew it couldn’t be any good. But as she fumbled with the door handle, Annie realized she didn’t care. So what if she didn’t trust you or what you had planned for the day? She wasn’t here to babysit you. 

As she reminded herself of that, she merely sighed in response to you and waved you off, face turning back into her usual glazed over expression, a mixture of unimpressed and bored. 

“Yeah, it does,” she said before leaving. 

The door shut with a slam as Annie rushed out, and when you glanced over at the alarm by her bedside, you noticed that it was only 10:20AM. You chuckled. Either Annie was that punctual, or she couldn’t stand you. Either way, you were amused. 

You put your arms above your head as you stretched your aching body out, then glanced at the drawers where you had hidden your lingerie and boots, then at the card on Annie’s bed. You needed to get out of this room. 

You wondered what you’d wear—when the sudden ugly thought hit you that you were without your closet. Looking down at the oversized pullover hoodie Annie had gotten for you in disgust now, you realized you didn’t _have_ a selection of clothes to go out in. All you could do was wear what was given to you which was a hoodie and...sweatpants. Your lips curled at the thought going out like this until an idea popped into your head. 

You popped up off the bed with a renewed vigor, immediately rummaging through Annie’s belongings to see what you could make do with. Sadly, it wasn’t much. Most of Annie’s clothes were far too casual for you, too cheap, and or too unimaginative—the colors dark like her personality. It wasn’t until you reached the top shelf of her drawer that you managed to find some large Alexander McQueen sunglasses. They were simple; typical black square glasses with small gold trim around the rim. They suited Annie but they didn’t suit you. 

Still, it was the chic-est thing you’d come across thus far apart from your own clothes. You shuddered as you thought of the idea of going out in your current clothes, although you would keep the hoodie and ditch the pants. 

Once you’d grabbed those, you also decided to pilfer a few more things from Annie’s room before showering and heading down to the cafeteria. You settled for her body wash, shampoos and conditioners, and made sure to steal a few hair ties along with some bobby pins. 

When you had finished showering, you wasted no time making your way to the cafeteria, grabbing some sandwich and a water, and of course a few peanut butter cups along the way to your destination. 

“Knock, knock,” you said as you rapped your knuckles against the half open door of the student clinic when you finally arrived. 

“Come in,” said an unfamiliar voice. 

You frowned and pushed the door open fully, only to see that the person you were looking for was not there. In his place was another young man, tall with sandy brown and grayish hair. 

“How can I help you?” he asked. 

“I’m looking for Farlan,” you said as you leaned against the door, taking your sunglasses off your face and resting them on top of your head. 

“Oh, Dr. Church,” the man replied. “Yeah, he’s off today.”

 _Great,_ you thought. Now what were you going to do with your day? 

“Is there anything I can help you with instead?” the man continued. 

He looked you over, eyes not missing the way your hand subconsciously moved to your wrist. You tried not to shoot him a glare and smiled instead, doing your best impression of someone else. 

“Yes, can you tell me where he might be by any chance? I have something to give him,” you said sweetly. 

You hoped he wouldn’t ask any more questions or continue asking you if you needed help. You just needed him to tell you where Farlan was otherwise your entire day—your plans to soothe and ease your boredom—would go straight to shit. 

“Uh,” the man said. “He might be in the library tutoring. He does that some Saturday’s. You might find him there.” 

“Right...” you nodded as you tried to think of where that might possibly be. 

The man in Farlan’s place looked at you again, able to read the expression on your face, and before you could say anything else, he answered your question for you. 

“It’s not too far from here. If you go down the hall and exit right, there’s a huge building across from here. That’s the library,” he said. 

You’re not sure you even said ‘bye’ or ‘thank you’ as you dashed out of the clinic, manners forgotten as you headed towards the library eager to find the fix to your boredom. At least you hoped Farlan would provide that for you. 

The last thing you wanted was to be alone in Annie’s dorm room by yourself. 

When you finally made it to the library, you were, and this was putting it mildly, absolutely underwhelmed by how...boring it was. You weren’t sure what you expected, but students hunching over computers, slouching in bean bags, and grouped together in study rooms wasn’t it. 

You weren’t sure how you’d find Farlan in this mess. 

You must’ve circled half the library, Prada boots clunking along as you got more and more frustrated at not being able to find him. The thought occurred that he might not be there, probably cooped away in his dorm with some sweet girl. You thought to exit the library. You’d find something else to do, of course you would, of course you _could._ You were, after all, you. 

You didn’t need anyone or anything. 

That was the thought that occurred in your head until you heard a voice, familiar this time, calling out what he thought was your name. 

“Annie,” Farlan said as he walked over to you with a smile. “What are you doing here?” 

“Looking for you actually,” you replied with a smile mirroring his. “I went to the clinic but you weren’t there.”

“Oh, yeah. I’m off every first Saturday of the month, sorry. I should’ve told you that. Is everything alright with your stitches?”

His eyes flashed down to your injured wrist which was covered by your oversized hoodie sleeve. You looked back to him and gave him another soft smile. He was so sweet that it almost felt wrong for you to be in his presence sometimes. 

“I’m fine,” you said. “I just have something for you,” you continued as you fished out the three peanut butter cups from the middle pocket of the hoodie and showed them to Farlan. 

And the soft laugh that he gave you when he saw those three pieces of candy should have been fucking illegal. It made your stomach do flips when you thought of how easy it was to make him smile; to make anyone smile and do it with sincerity but especially someone as nice as him. And you told yourself you meant to be sincere. So what if you were partially using him? You were trying to thank him, too.

Right? 

“Wow, you remembered,” he said incredulously, soft fingers dancing across your palms as he took the candy from you. “Thank you so much, Annie.” 

You almost winced at the name before you realized he didn’t know yours. 

You almost wished he did.

 _Almost._

“So,” Farlan cleared his throat after putting your gift away in his backpack. He ran a hand through his hair nervously. “What are you doing after this?” 

The hope in his voice alongside the sweet almost desperate look in his eyes was endearing to you. It was going exactly how you planned for it to. You couldn’t complain, not really. 

“Nothing,” you said, voice inflecting up higher towards the end as if to open the door for him to invite you to do _fucking_ something. “What are you doing?” you asked instead when you realized he was too shy to do so. “Your day off and all.”

Farlan laughed at this and carded his fingers through his hair again. You wondered if this was what he did when he was nervous. 

“Not much. I have a few bottles of wine in my mini fridge and I was going to order food for the night,” he said almost sheepishly. 

“That’s how you’re going to spend your day off?” you teased. 

“Yeah…” he replied, cheeks and the tips of his ears turning pink now. “I know it’s boring but...you’re more than welcome to join me. That’s if you want,” he added quickly. 

Of course you did. You even said so to boost his ego, making him flush an even more crimson red. Sure, Farlan had no idea you were using him but wasn’t he essentially using you too?

Wasn’t that what people did with each other? 

Wasn’t everything a mutual exchange of wanting something out of one another? 

*****

It was what you wanted, and you knew exactly what it’d lead to. 

You knew that following him back to his dorm to play the role of a lovesick guest would do nothing but lead you to his bed. That was where you wanted to be anyway, and you knew he wanted it too from the moment he met you. And now that you were bored, you were more than happy to get lost in whatever fantasy world he created in his mind when he met you. 

What else would you get into if not that? 

It wasn’t like you could work. It wasn't like you had...you shook your injured wrist out as you walked side by side with Farlan across the campus. 

That was how you ended up with him in his dorm room, huddled together on the floor sharing bottles (yes, bottles) of wine with each other while the two of you scarfed down Thai food that he had ordered for the two of you. He even tipped generously despite being a broke intern and that endeared you to him more. 

Although you weren’t drunk, you were buzzed. So was Farlan. And in between being buzzed, you remembered asking him about the size of the medical university and how he was able to work at the clinic, and so much more. You played your part perfectly, and so did he. You wanted to seem curious, and you lied to yourself and told yourself that you really did care. 

And Farlan? Farlan couldn’t _wait_ to tell you about how Liberio Medical University was expanding, with part of it turning into a hospital and another part of it opening up a new veterinary program. It’d be one of the few medical universities that offered something like that, and he was going to be showing prospective students around campus next week. You remembered nodding and acting interested because you think part of you was. Part of you must’ve thought he was so sweet, so kind, so giving, and that was why you were here in the first place. 

And at some point—you couldn’t remember when exactly but the sun had gone down by then—you remembered ending up in bed with Farlan. You initiated it, climbing into his bed for comfort and feigning tiredness. His fingers danced over your naked thighs, trailing closer and closer up as the two of you laid side by side with each other, both buzzed and feeling the effects of the alcohol coursing through your veins. And you think he whispered something along the lines of “you’re so pretty,” before leaning in to try to kiss you before you stopped him and grabbed his wrist. Your fingers wrapped around the neatly calligraphed name tattooed on his wrist, and you quirked your brow up at him in a playful manner. 

“Won’t your girlfriend mind?” you asked almost mockingly. 

Farlan’s face fell from that of an anticipatory one to one you couldn’t decipher. If you had essentially just cock blocked yourself, you would’ve leapt out the goddamn window. Because you didn’t _**care**_ if he had a girlfriend or not, truth be told. But Farlan was clearly one of those men who seemed to, and in _that_ sense, you were fucked.

The next moments were like a blur, your ears pounding with blood as you tried to recall what he said.

He pushed himself a little bit away from you, before sitting up and turning his back to you. You watched him sigh heavily before he finally spoke. 

“Maria isn’t my girlfriend...” he told you, looking back at you now. “She was my sister.” 

And by the end of his sentence, you could see the tears brimming in his eyes, _hear_ the crack in his voice at the pain of acknowledging his sister in the past tense. You knew you were supposed to comfort him but you didn’t know how to do that. So you sat up to mirror him and asked him what happened with the gentlest voice you could muster. 

From then on you only remembered bits and pieces of information, memory fading in and out as you recalled what he said to you. Farlan said his sister had been murdered, shot in a movie theater bathroom. Something about a film she directed. Something, something, something. That was what you made out between hitched sobs and a cracked voice. 

That, and the sentence, “she made one mistake and it cost her her life.”

You ignored that. 

What you focused on instead was the crying man in front of you, clearly desperate for _something_ , that of which you could not provide. You had no idea how to comfort Farlan or what to do in order to soothe his crying, not the way he probably needed. It wasn’t that you were bothered by the idea of a man crying in front of you; you didn’t like _anyone_ crying in front of you. They’d find better comfort alone than with you. 

But that wasn’t the complete truth because you still had one thing you could do. One thing you wanted to do. 

And although you told yourself it was more for Farlan than you, every move after the thought came to your head felt like the slow burn of a blazing fire over your entire body, gasoline and match all originating from you. Because you knew Farlan would accept it, accept _you_ at any state but especially in the state he was in. So you moved in closer, your face only inches away from his. And as you let him slot his lips over yours, desperate and needy and slightly salty from his tears, you could feel the fire fanning its way to your insides, slowly burning down every part of you down to the bone. 

Because what Farlan told you couldn’t be right, couldn’t even be the same person you were thinking of. No, you didn’t want to think about that. 

What you wanted to think about were Farlan’s fingers ghosting over your clit, gentle and sweet as he rubbed on your bundle of nerves in slow, lazy circles. 

They felt good despite not being the slender, longer fingers you preferred to dream of every night. 

* * *

As soon as he got back home, the first thing Levi did was clean.

He wasn’t sure what else there was to do with his time off. Levi could remember Erwin telling him to rest, but Levi didn’t want to lie on the couch all day. So he did what he did best. Even with the inability to use his left arm, it didn’t take him long. He’d already cleaned his room, Isabel’s room, their respective bathrooms, the kitchen, the living room, and the front porch. Levi even took the time to rearrange his teas, putting them in alphabetical order and into neat little boxes. 

He didn’t know what else to do because there was nothing else to do. 

Even his plans to take Isabel out to dinner in the evening were scrapped. She had texted him in the afternoon to tell him that she’d be studying with a group of friends and they’d all order something together. In that text she also made sure to tell him not to worry about picking her up because a friend would take her home because “you really need to rest, big bro.” Levi responded by sending her some money for food. 

Now he was on his way to the hospital to visit Kenny with nothing but the sounds of the city and his fingers lightly drumming on the steering wheel keeping him occupied. It wasn’t late when he made it to the hospital. If anything, he was earlier than he’d ever been apart from when he’d visit Kenny early in the morning before work. 

But he actually wished he came earlier if it meant he’d avoid the sight he was seeing now. 

He’d remember it forever, standing out of Kenny’s room seeing more tubes and machines hooked up to him than usual along with a crowd of people around him, shouting and saying shit he only heard from Isabel’s favorite medical shows. As soon as Petra saw him, she rushed out away from her team of nurses and doctors. 

“Everything’s okay, he’s just being intubated—please, sit and wait here, Mr. Ackerman,” he recalled her saying to him even though he already said she could refer to him as Levi. 

Apparently after a patient gets intubated, they need lots of rest. 

This was what Petra also told him when she found him after they had finished taking care of Kenny. 

And although Levi was no fucking doctor, he knew that getting intubated couldn’t have meant anything good, especially not for an old man with terminal lung cancer. He knew what it meant even if Petra tried to sugarcoat it with sweeter words. 

“Patients get intubated all the time,” she told him, and he merely nodded, staying silent the entire time she spoke to him. 

It was a lot of Petra talking and Levi not hearing anything except the increasingly loud sound of Kenny’s heart monitor. Was it always that loud, he asked himself.

It wasn’t until Petra invited Levi to a bar with her across the street not far from where she lived that she actually got a response from him. 

Sure, maybe it was more of a grunt as he looked back but he answered her, didn’t he? He went with her, didn’t he? 

And no. It wasn’t the distraction he needed, and it wasn’t the distraction he’d gotten used to in the past couple of weeks. 

But he took Petra’s offer up without another word, actually caving in to her pleading eyes and looks for **once** , and sat at a bar with her even though he was well aware of what it’d lead to. 

No, this wasn’t the distraction he wanted. The one he wanted wasn't available. 

So this would have to do for now. 

* * *

It wasn’t bad. 

Farlan fucked exactly how you imagined he would—sweet and gentle and eager to please. And he did here and there; please you, that was. But it was so boring. So colorless. So bland. So predictable. Farlan treated you like you were fragile, precious, a treasure, an _angel_ or so you remember him whispering into your ear at one point. 

And it made you close your eyes, pretending and wishing it were someone else on top of you. You wished the person you were with at that moment saw you for who you actually were, _what_ you actually were because it was fucking laughable that Farlan thought of you as an angel. At one point, you told yourself you liked it but you were lying. 

You didn’t like that at all. 

What you **_liked_ ** was someone seeing you for who you really were in all the colors you were painted in. 

Because you weren’t an angel.

No one who looked at you could ever call you something like that in earnest if they looked closer and bothered to crack apart the holes of the broken hub that was the hive you lived in. 

Because you were a monster.

And you belonged in a cage. 

Why couldn’t everyone see that? 

Why did only **one** person in the world see that? 

Why was it that only one person in the world **saw** _you_? 

* * *

It wasn’t bad. 

Although Levi did most of the work, he had to admit that anything warm that wasn’t his own fist felt better than nothing. It’d been so long since he’d had skin to skin contact with another person, and an even longer time since he’d buried his problems into another real, live human being instead of work. And Petra was nice, she really was. 

Eager to please and sweet, she did her best. Every other moment she’d look up at him with those big round eyes in complete and utter reverence as if he were a fucking God. 

It made Levi shut his eyes, mind drifting off to a more familiar pair of eyes besides the ones in front of him now. 

It wasn’t that sex with Petra was bad but it was...too easy. 

There was no play. No tease. It was straight-forward and right to the point. And Levi supposed he should’ve liked it; but he couldn’t lie to himself. 

He didn’t like it at all. 

What he liked was someone countering his every move, dodging his every tactic. He liked someone outsmarting him and being better at him at every turn. 

What he liked was someone who never stayed in one place long enough, not someone who waited for his beck and call on her knees. 

He liked the stupid, quick fox that’d leave him feeling dumbfounded and stupid every time she outsmarted him and disappeared without a trace. 

Maybe it was the vulnerability of the late night, his fucking life, and the warm body in front of him that made him think this but it was the _challenge_ that he missed. And yes, he could admit that but only for now and it was due to his stupid vulnerability, chinks in his armor slightly cracking as his life began to fall apart. 

He’d only admit to it then. 

But if you asked him again by the time he left Petra’s apartment, he would’ve looked at you with a blank stare. 

To Levi, it didn’t matter now because it was in the past even if the past meant not a mere five minutes ago since he departed from Petra’s bed. 

Now he was focused on the present, grey eyes boring holes into the moon hanging above his head for the night as he got into his car. It looked nice. And Levi stared up at it for a few seconds too long and looked ahead at the road, starting the ignition to his car.

He couldn’t wait to go home.

* * *

The moon looked pretty from Farlan’s dorm room. It was your only view while Farlan dozed off next behind you. The moon for tonight was beautiful and a much prettier reality than the one you were facing. 

But you didn’t want to think of that. 

The thought of your real reality...the last few hours with Farlan along with his story about his sister...it made your stomach swoop into your spine. You couldn’t think about that. 

What you wanted to think of was the moon. It was bright and the sight of it made you want to go home. 

You sighed, feeling the weight of Farlan’s arm around your waist a lot heavier all of a sudden. It’d been crushing you for the better half of the last two hours now, feeling more and more like lead with each passing minute. 

You meant to leave. 

You really had. 

The moment he fell asleep, you wanted to leave but you didn’t. Instead, what you did was stay, listening to the sound of his breathing and staring out at the moon while you recalled his story over and over again—so much so that at one point you thought Farlan was repeating it directly into your ear. 

_“She made one mistake and it cost her her life.”_

You shut your eyes and shook the intrusive thought away. No. You also didn’t know how many Maria Churches existed in this world. And of course it could’ve been a coincidence. It could’ve been a one in a million chance coincidence that two Maria Churches existed in this universe, and both of them chose to be filmmakers; both of them shot dead in a movie theater bathroom because of the films they decided to make.

It had to be the world’s idea of a joke, and you wanted to laugh. 

But you couldn’t. 

Because if the weight of Farlan’s arm told you anything along with the gnawing sensation deep in your chest—you knew there was only one way to find out. 

You gently slid out of Farlan’s hold, his arm seemingly lighter now as it fell onto his bed. With your hands on your waist, you peered through the dimly lit moonlight and looked around for Farlan’s phone. 

It was your luck that Farlan wasn’t the type of person to care about the newest technological updates. You remembered how he had to click a center button through his phone indicating to you that he had a phone that’d only unlock with a fingerprint ID. It was exactly what you needed for confirmation—what you needed in order to soothe the ache in your chest—and the position of his right arm made your job that much easier. 

You tiptoed to his side of the bed, picking up and putting on all of your strewn about clothes first. Once you put your boots on and put the sunglasses into the pocket of your hoodie, you grabbed Farlan’s phone and made it back to where you had been lying earlier. With a gentle touch, you reached out for his hand and held it over the identification pad. 

Putting his hand back down to the bed, you clicked on the photos app in his phone and began to scroll up. Even Farlan’s phone was dry. Sweet and full of memes and personal photos—nothing lewd, nothing crude, not even a nude. You couldn’t say it didn’t suit him. 

You continued to scroll up, up, up through the years looking for evidence you were hoping didn’t exist until you saw it. 

And that feeling from your stomach pushed so far back now it felt like you were bowled over. 

Because there was Farlan posing next to two people who looked like the perfect mix of his features, and there was another woman with them, smiling wide and bright. 

With her arms wrapped tightly around Farlan from behind, you could see that she was average height.

She had freckles. 

Her face was round like a doll. 

She had dirty blonde hair that matched that of her brother’s and her parents. 

And she had big doe eyes.

The kind that reminded you of a Disney cartoon. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long! I've been a bit busy, but this is finally out. ❤️❤️
> 
> [Vibes](https://love-dontbeshy.tumblr.com/post/644035747815538688) for tonight if you want to know how Kilian's dressed in a few scenes of this chapter. 
> 
> And of course, feel free to follow me on [tumblr](https://love-dontbeshy.tumblr.com/) for more updates/to chat!
> 
> ALSO! Thank you SO much to one of my readers on here for introducing me to her own LDBS playlist. You have no idea how helpful your beautiful playlist was in helping me write, and thank you again for sharing that with me 🥺. Ily! Thank you everyone for your patience. This story will be continued.

**Author's Note:**

> This is heavily inspired by Killing Eve! I couldn't stop thinking about making a story like this for the last few months since rewatching KE, and I'm excited to share it (also nervous lol)! 
> 
> Reader will be referred to as Kilian, but that is not her name. You'll discover more about her as time goes on. The universe this takes place in is a mix of Europe and also cities/places from SNK as if they're part of it. 
> 
> **Update (02/24/21): This story will be continued.**  
>  \- Feel free to follow me on [tumblr](https://love-dontbeshy.tumblr.com/) for updates. :3  
> \- Here's a [link](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3vQwSrSmMjs1wjE6GWlfWk) to my Spotify playlist for this story as well!  
> \- One of my lovely followers recreated the playlist for [Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/gb/playlist/love-dont-be-shy/pl.u-NpXmm2asL5by87) if that's your preferred streaming platform, thank you so much to them ❤️


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